Hidden Abilities
by He Who Lurks in Shadow
Summary: Link has broken a curse that has beset Hyrule for seven years. Already he has been confronted with a strange evil different than all the rest, an adversary that strikes at heart, not body, not to mention a larger, more familiar, force.
1. No Hat For You!

**Chapter One – No Hat For You!**

In a small, nearly isolated town was a school, and in that school sat about five hundred seventeen and eighteen year olds watching the clock eagerly. As the clocked hit 2:30, a bell rang and all five hundred erupted from the school, save one.

A boy slowly stood as soon as the rest were gone. He nodded his farewell to the teacher, his eyes a dull blue. The teacher returned the gesture and then smiled as her star pupil removed a forest green cap from his bag. The cap easily stood out from his pure white uniform, right down to white shoes. He then sat the cap on his head, covering his windswept blonde hair.

As he started to leave, the teacher stood and walked to him. As she placed her hand on his shoulder, the student turned to her, bracing himself for what was coming.

"Link, you know that if anything is bothering you, you can come tell me, right?" It was the same question, once every Friday, which she asked him. He was always the last to leave, and usually the only joy he had was when she gave him the note to let him wear his cap after the first dismissal bell.

"Yes, Ms. Dayton," he responded in his monotonous voice he usually used in school.

"It's Ms. Denise. Calling me by my last name makes me feel old."

Link nodded and a small trace of a smile appeared on his face, usually devoid of emotion. He left and walked out to the schoolyard.

* * *

Just as he sat down on the steps, he saw someone approach. Link quickly groaned and put anything breakable in his pockets. Just as he zipped up the backpack and set in back down, the person arrived.

"Hey, hat boy! Don't you know wearing hats is against school rules?" It was Mike, the one most of the kids rallied around. Normally, he would leave Link alone, had it not been for that one incident.

They had been bolting to their classes. Link was heading to his locker, Mike to his class from his locker. Link turned a corner only to smash into Mike, the impact sending them sprawling. Now they would have gotten up and gone their separate ways had a girl that Mike liked not came over and helped Link up instead of Mike. Link had become friends with her, which caused Mike to believe that she had chosen the new kid over him. Sarah, as she was called, quickly became Link's last and unfortunately only protection against Mike, which made him even angrier.

Mike knocked Link's backpack off the railing where he had set it. "I said hats are not allowed!" and with that, snatched it from his head.

Link slowly stood up. "Don't start with me. It's not smart to provoke me."

"That idiot girlfriend of yours ain't here to protect you, _Linky._ You're in a man's fight, so it might be best for you to sit back down." He finished by shoving Link back onto the stairs.

Link winced as he stood back up. "Forgive me, Sarah," he whispered, and then landed a punch square on Mike's nose. Link wiped a bit of blood onto his shirt as Mike topped into the crowd that had gathered. Link picked up his cap and placed it back on his head.


	2. Sarah

**A/N: Sorry it's taken so long! I've been working and all sorts of other stuff. I'm sure I've lost a few readers, but here's hope I still have some left!**

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**Chapter Two – Sarah**

"I'm ashamed of you, Link. I never expected to hear that you punched Mike, let alone knocked him out cold."

Link sat in the chair in the office by the gym, wishing that he was invisible. Ms. Raor, one of his three favorite teachers, had found him running for his life. After finding a crowd of kids chasing after him, led by Mike, she took him away so they wouldn't kill him.

He jumped out of his chair, anger quickly rising. "He insulted Sarah! I had to do something!" he cried out in his defense.

"One thing's for sure; he's not going to mess with you for a while. I'm sure Sarah will enjoy the story. Oh, could you give this envelope to her for me?" she asked, handing Link an envelope.

* * *

As Link strode up Sarah's driveway, he tripped over a large tree root. A muffled giggle was all he needed. Standing up, he brushed some dirt away and replied, "Glad you thought it was funny."

Sarah walked up to him. "Good, 'cause I did." She laughed again, then stopped and grabbed the bottom of his shirt. "What's this?" she asked, pointing to a small splotch of red.

"What's what?" he asked.

"Link, all your clothes are white. Red stands out pretty well."

"It's nothing," he feebly replied.

"Tell me before I tell everyone your bellybutton started leaking."

Link stared at Sarah for a moment. Her sense of humor was strange, but he thought he was used to it. Bellybutton springing a leak? Where did she come up with this stuff? "Well... I, um," he faltered, and then blurted, "I punched Mike in the nose and knocked him out!"

"How many times have I told you to ignore him?" she asked, a note of worry in her voice. Mike's going to want to get back at him.

"He went too far this time! He insulted you!" he repeated. "What should I have done, just sat there?"

"Don't fight him because he insulted me, Linky," she replied.

"He still shouldn't have insulted you," Link replied, already knowing he was fighting _another_ losing battle.

"I know. Perfect worlds only exist in fairy tales. Now, what did you come here for?" Link solemnly handed Sarah the envelope. She took it then looked back at him. "Good news or bad?"

Link gasped in mock horror. "How dare you accuse me of reading it! I might have a few days ago, but I'm the NEW Link!" he said, giving her a thumbs up.

She opened it and quickly read the piece of paper. "It's from that summer ecology class I've been trying to get ahold of. Says the application was very good."

Link shook his head. "Flip it over."

Sarah laughed and muttered something about the New Link. Finishing the back, she sat down on a bench, her head bent, the letter slowly settling on the ground.

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**A/N: Pardon Sarah's humor. And Link's. And anyone else's humor that wasn't, well, humorful. Again, sorry for the long wait time. Chapter Three's not going to take as long, I promise!**


	3. Whipped Cream?

**Chapter Three – Whipped Cream?**

"You'll do better next year. I'm positive."

Link and Sarah were in her house. Sarah was sitting at the kitchen table, wiping tears from her eyes as Link started to whip up something to eat, literally.

"You don't understand, Link. Next year it'll be too late. I have to have the Ecology Year Three requirement passed by this year before I can even apply to that one college I was telling you about. Link," she said suddenly. "What are you doing?"

For as she finished, Link removed a tub of whipped cream from the fridge. Popping open the lid, he scooped some onto a spoon and ate it. "Still good. And as for your answer, I'm fixing a snack to cheer you up," he replied, smiling.

"And they say _I'm_ weird. I'll be outside. When you're done, tell me." She walked out the screen door to the backyard.

A short while later, Link walked outside carrying two plates and a box. He found Sarah hanging from a tree and tossed her a plate.

-

Sarah looked down at Link from atop the tree branch, a box of vanilla wafers in her hand. "You know, pie isn't so bad. And these wafer things are just as good."

"I brought them out so we could share," Link grumbled.

She laughed and dropped the box on his head. "It's the Attack of the Killer Wafers from Outer Space!"

"You'll regret those words! The Killer Wafers from Outer Space are not pleased!" he exclaimed as he frisbeed the wafers at the ever-moving Sarah.

"It's the Legion of the Killer Ninja Wafer Throwing Stars!" she yelled.

-

After Link ran out of wafers, Sarah collapsed onto the ground, panting. "Hey, Link, I've got some good news."

Intrigued, Link also stopped. "What?"

"I've got a friend coming to stay for a while."

"Anyone I know?"

"Actually, yes. You've met her before."

"Her?"

"Yes, her. Her name is Zelda."


	4. Zelda

**A/N: Chapter Four! It's ZELDA!

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Chapter Four – Zelda

Zelda, yes, he had met Zelda before. Their meeting had been burned into his memory ever since he _had_ met her. Link sat quietly and let this news sink in.

-

It had been a few years back. Link had just gotten out of school and, as usual, had snuck out of the house to go to Saria's and upon arriving, found someone else there. He strides along her driveway and then the new girl sauntered over, demanding to know who he was.

"I'm Link, a friend of Sarah's. And you would be?"

"Zelda," she replied, as Sarah came down.

Sarah shot a look at Zelda, then walked to Link. "Be nice you two. I'd rather not have to peel flattened people off the ground." Link laughed as Sarah led them out back into the orchard.

After a bit, Link had the bright idea for them all to sit on a rather large branch. Sarah warned him that this was a special tree that her father had cultivated from a single, hundred year old seed. Link and Zelda, feeling brave, clambered up and the second they touched the branch, it cracked and fell, shattering the back porch.

Sarah's face paled. Her father would kill them.

-

Zelda was gone the next morning and Link was banned from leaving the house for a very long time, unless he was at Sarah's helping rebuild the porch. He had taken off toward their house that morning, just to see Zelda's father pulling out. He had wanted to say he was sorry for getting her sent home. He had come too late.

-

"Zelda?" Link gulped. "You're talking about Zelda from last time?" His voice wavered. He hadn't apologized. He _knew_ she was mad at him. She probably wouldn't even give him the time of day. And he didn't want her mad at him. Well, he didn't want anyone mad at him, but especially not Zelda. He didn't know why, but he couldn't stand her mad at him. And he was sure she was fuming.

-

Meanwhile, Zelda was packing her stuff when she found a picture shoved in the suitcase. She snatched it and stared at it for a moment.

It was a photo from the last trip she had taken. There she was, surrounded by Sarah and Link. Link. She remembered him. She more than remembered him, she despised him. She hated him. Hated him with a vengeance. He didn't even say he was sorry. He just stood there and shook his head. Somehow, Sarah had gotten her to agree to come back. She didn't want to even see Link. He didn't even try to apologize!

-

Sarah nodded. "You're not a fighter. Don't be mad at her for that. Dad's got everything fixed. And besides, it can't be all bad." She motioned for him to lean forward, then whispered something in his ear. Link's face turned red instantly and he stood up.

"I can't believe you just said that. My what?" She laughed and shook her head as he left.

-

That night, sleep would not come to Link. Sarah would never have said that. He whispered it out loud to make more sense out of it. "Don't worry. She can't still be mad. Besides, turn on some of that manly charm of yours and she'll forgive you anyway." Then she laughed.

For some reason, that idea didn't really sound so bad, save for the 'manly charm' part that sent her laughing. He did want Zelda's forgiveness, but he wanted her to actually know he was sorry and not something he had convinced her to say.

He glanced at the clock. The big red numbers read 1:17. He needed his sleep for tomorrow. Tomorrow would be a big day. Yes, a big day.

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**A/N: PLEASE DON'T KILL ME!Fears all the Zelink fans grabbing their pitchforks It'll get better, I promise. You die-hard fans will already be figuring it out. And no, 1:17 has no signifigance to the story, as far as I'm concerned so far.**


	5. The Big Swim

**A/N: Yes, Finally! The story gets plot! Zelda's here!

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Chapter Five – The Big Swim

Link sat nervously on Sarah's porch. Zelda should be here any minute. With him staying up way too late and a restless sleep besides, he was about to go to sleep. Of course, he could only imagine what Zelda would say with him conked out on the porch.

As if on cue, Zelda pulled up in a cab. Paying the guy, she lugged some of her bags to the porch then glared at Link. "Hello, Link," she choked out, trying to sound nice, but Link knew better.

Standing up, he responded with, "Hey. Need some help?" So she dumped a bit of luggage on him then strode into the house, Link in tow. She led him to the guest room and they unloaded the bags there. Zelda started to shoo Link out, but he turned to face her.

"You hate me don't you?" he asked.

"I thought it was obvious. Now go!" she commanded, shoving him out the door.

"But-" He was interrupted by the door slamming in his face.

-

The next day, Link, Sarah, and Zelda were out in the orchard, next to the large pond her dad had made. Sarah and Zelda were swimming in circles, trying to catch up to one another. Link was on the shore-like part laughing his head off at the two.

"Laugh at us all you want! Why don't you come and join us?" Sarah queried.

"I don't wanna get wet," Link replied stubbornly. Sarah laughed and responded by pulling him in. With a splash, Link uprighted himself and took off after Sarah. She spun around and swam around Link and Zelda as Link sprang to catch her. Missing, he crash landed into Zelda, who rolled through the water and jumped on Link. Link sunk like a stone, then, as he quickly twisted around, he found himself face to face with Zelda, closer than most people got in a lifetime. Not wanting to remind her of her hatred of him, he immediately tickled her until she let go. He swan to the surface. And the shore.

"Now how do you like that, hmm? I am the Swimmer King!" he shouted as he cannonballed back in. Zelda laughed then took off after Link.

Suddenly, Sarah burst from the water, grabbed Link by the waist, then hauled him onto the shore. "Obviously not you!"

Zelda smiled as a book she had read a long time ago popped into her head. "I have an idea. Let's dive down and search for secret passageways or something!" The two agreed and down they went, to the deepest part of the lake, which is really saying something seeing as her father had five bulldozers brought in to build this thing. So they dove.

After a minute, Zelda bubbled a bit, and they returned to the surface. She repeated her underwater message in the air. "I think I found something!"

So they dove once more and found Zelda's discovery. It being a mysterious passageway, and them being teenagers, they investigated. First Link, then Sarah, and bringing up the rear, Zelda.

After a few minutes, Link shouted excitedly that the passageway was done and there was a large room at the end. The trio entered and went up a set of stone stairs that led to an old wooden door. Finding it locked, Link smiled, told the others to back up, then barreled into it. With pieces of wood flying everywhere, Sarah, Link, and Zelda strode though, ready for anything now.

-

After a long series of tunnels and pathways, the three came across a small cavern, housing a large stone. Sarah dashed to it and scanned it. "Uh, Link. I can't read this. Looks like chicken scratch."

Zelda leaned over to it. "It says 'To the one who recalls nothing but is all, you are the key.' Hey, there's a poem below it." She dusted a bit of webbing off of it.

"_Memory lost, importance great._

_Stones of Fire, Wind, Water, Earth, Thunder._

_These Five, brought together by Fate._

_Shall do great deeds of Wonder."_

"What? I don't get it. Amnesia, important, five rocks, fate, and wonder. Sounds like a riddle." Link pondered on that for a moment before shrugging. "What about it?"

"Memory lost, someone can't remember. Importance great. They need to remember fast. Stones of Fire, Wind, Water, Earth, and Thunder. Powerful rocks? These five, brought together by fate. Means that the person needs to remember something important about some magic rocks? Great deeds of wonder. Get the rocks, become famous?" Sarah thought aloud.

"I like famous. Let's get these rock things. Any idea where to start?" Zelda replied.

Link bent over and picked a white rock from the ground. "What about this?" he asked as he hurled it to Sarah. She looked it over. "Maybe. I honestly don't know. Keep it." Link pocketed it and they left for home.

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**A/N: I know, the riddle's something I came up with off the top of my head. You die-hard Zelda nuts are probably figuring the riddle out by now. Oh well. Chapter Six is about halfway through. And Vladmir, I said1:17 didn't matter. Yet! I may get bored and link it with some event. Who knows... ONLY ME! Thank you for your patience.**


	6. Bad Water?

**A/N: Yes, I agree. Chapter five was more of a filler to introduce the Riddle while I had it fresh in my mind. I threw in a few funnies in this one to hopefully balance it out. Have fun and remember the marshmallows!

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Chapter Six – Bad Water?

The next morning, Link awoke to his alarm buzzing in his ear. He reached his hand over to turn it off. With a groan, he found the snooze button. Within a second, the sound stopped. He yawned, then fell back asleep.

A half-hour later, he was awakened by a shriek from the doorway. His eyes, bloodshot from lack of sleep, shot open to see Zelda standing there, frozen in terror or shock, he couldn't tell.

"Whazzwrong?" he mumbled sleepily as he sat up.

"You about killed me! I walked in and the wall about exploded!" And she was right. There was a chunk of wall missing.

"How did that happen?" He stood up and looked at Zelda. "And what are you doing in my room for that matter?"

She rolled her eyes. "Sarah sent me to fetch you. She said there's something strange with the lake." She walked out.

-

After Link got ready, they set off toward the lake. Upon arrival, they found it partially gone, with large waves crashing onto the shore. But there was no wind. Link looked at Sarah strangely. She pointed to the north, where the waves were heading.

"Link, remember that rock you took? Well, I couldn't sleep last night so I researched a bit. Turns out that there was once a place where certain rocks are put on a rod of wood and can make fire or ice or things like that. I think that's what those rocks were that that thing talked about. And also what you took home."

"Well, that puts a twist on things. So what, we collect these rocks?" Zelda asked.

"Yes!" Link shouted. "An adventure! A perilous journey fraught with danger and, well, peril at every turn! One you hope to come back alive from and wish for death halfway through!" he proclaimed.

Sarah stared at him. "Well, let's not wish for death, shall we? However, Link, you hold the stone called the Windstone. I know, a straightforward name. Anyway, that stone can do something powerful, but I have no idea what. So, let's go get the others!" She shouted as they headed north along the forest trails.

-

"Are we there yet?" Link asked.

"For the umpteenth time, no!" Sarah responded. "We will get there when we get there. How was I supposed to know the other rock thing was this far?"

Zelda groaned. "It's hot, I'm tired, and there's no end to this jungle. I say we rest for a bit, cook us something, you know, all that."

Sarah stopped and sat down for a moment. "The first good idea in an hour. What did we bring to eat?"

Link pulled a bag of potato chips out of his pack. It was all Zelda could do to not hit him. "Chips? You bring _chips_? Of all the things in the world, why chips?"

He ripped open the bag. "We were out of marshmallows."

-

After a few more hours, the trio arrived at a small clearing. Sarah strode in and sat on a peculiar rock. Yawning, she proposed the idea of camping out here tonight. Link and Zelda passed their agreements and set up for the night. After pitching their hastily-packed tents, the three laid down to sleep.

A few hours after Link, the last one to sleep, had gone to sleep, there was a great rumbling, as if the earth was being ripped apart around them. As Link shot up and peeked outside, he saw a mammoth hole where Zelda's tent had been. He got dressed and rushed to wake Sarah. After doing so, they grabbed what provisions they would need, including a long rope, and a flashlight. Link, always the adventurer, grabbed his slingshot and a bag of rocks.

Tying the rope to a large rock, the two scaled down the hole. After a few minutes, they found a ledge where most of Zelda's tent was. Finding no Zelda, Sarah pulled out her flashlight and took a look around.

Almost instantly, five bats flew down toward them. Instead of ignoring them, they proceeded to attempt to attack Sarah. Link pulled out a rock and shot it at the first bat. It fell, and with four more rocks fell four more bats. Link readied the slingshot as a door slid up.

Inside they found a large cavern filled with tree roots. Threading their way through, Link caught sight of someone. Going faster, assuming that was possible, he quickly reached the person. As he turned to face Link and Sarah, he laughed.

"You finally caught up did you? Well, a job well done. And what are you calling yourself these days, my young sapling?" The man turned to Sarah.

Sarah took a moment to examine the stranger. He was old, that was no question. His face was wrinkled, but in his eyes, you could see youth bubbling to escape. He carried with him a large stick with intricate lines crossing it. "My name is Sarah."

The old man nodded. "Sarah. Fitting name, if I may say so. And you, young man. I assume you are Link? Yes? Good. I've been waiting for you two for quite some time now. First, Link, what's with the white coloring? I've never taken a fancy to white clothing. Hurts my old eyes."

"It's what my mom buys for me. I've worn it all my life. I've never much liked it, but there was this one time I came home wearing a green sweater and she made me go change. Always had a problem with colors, she did." Link shrugged.

"Well then, Sarah, was it? Sarah, you have known Link for a long time, yes? And in that time you two have learned to work as a team, yes? Good," he said for each of her nods. "See that flower up there? I've always liked that flower, but I never could get it. Do you mind doing my a small favor and getting one for me? Mind you, just one now."

Link and Sarah sprang as high up the tree roots they could and slowly clambered up them. They would help one another get up there when one would fall or such, and so they both arrived at the same time. Link hurriedly reached for the flower when, as he picked it, all the roots withdrew. The room was empty and there was a lone door on the left of them. Proceeding through, Link gasped at the room. It was decorated with about every flower imaginable. Link slowly strode forward and the man stepped from a small door to the side. "Thank you. Now I'm sure you two could use some sleep. I believe these quarters will prove satisfactory. And as for your comrade, she's fine, so rest up. You'll need it."

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**A/N: We were out of marshmallows. I find that hilarious. By the way, I've finally put all the characters listed in One through Five and their Hyrulian counterparts. When I post Seven, I'll put Six's people. Goodbye and have a nice day.**


	7. Ruo

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews. First, Redleef, I'll do my best to lengthen the chapters. And beamers, thanks for the compliment and as for whether the Master Sword will be in here or not is undecided. I'm also going to try to be a bit more descriptive so as to add more to the story.****

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Chapter Seven – Ruo

In the morning, Link opened his eyes and jumped up, trying to remember where he was. As it dawned on him, he quickly started to get dressed, when he realized his outfit was gone! It had been replaced with a forest green one. Grumbling, he put it on. And, wow, it was comfortable! Having no idea what fabric it was, he silently hoped it wouldn't kill him. Walking out of the tiny room, he immediately encountered the old man.

"Good morning! Did you have a nice rest?"

Link grunted and went to find Sarah and, hopefully, Zelda. After arriving at Sarah's 'room,' the two started out the door and were stopped by the old man.

"Sarah, wait. I want you have this." The man handed her a small bag. Upon opening it, she pulled out a green stone. "The Earthstone has been mine since the legends were told of it. I believe you will need it soon. Have fun, you two. Have fun while you can."

Link exited and instantly ran into Zelda, who was obviously steaming mad. She had obviously had a rough night, with leaves and twigs all in her hair, her clothes all dirt-ridden, and such as it is, she didn't like it.

"Link! How dare you! Do you realize what I've been through? I've had a rock cave in on me, buried in a pile of dirt, thrown around through branches, and then lost in pine needles! Then I had to find some sleeping place, seeing as how my tent got stuck on that ledge! Meanwhile you come waltzing in, get a good night's rest and even get new clothes! I've tried to be nice, believe me. But this is the last straw! You didn't even give a second thought about me, did you? Did you?"

"But-" Link tried to say, but she threw her hands up, huffed, and stormed off. Link, still not sure what exactly happened, followed her out.

-

Outside, the three packed their stuff up and Sarah showed the Earthstone off to Zelda. Big mistake. Having newfound reasons, she started yelling about how he thought a rock was more important than her. Link, stunned, just stood there as she again stormed off, this time toward the east, toward the next tone's location as marked on a map Sarah produced.

"You know, I'm glad we did find that one. That's one less stone that I'll have to 'adventure' with Link to get," Zelda remarked. Link kept quiet, not wanting to incite the great beast he referred to as Zelda. He shook his head and promptly fell off a small cliff.

Sarah jumped down after him, then saw that they had stumbled upon a mysterious area. The clear blue sky seemed to melt away in a large lake in front of them. Link slowly crept up to the crystalline water and ran his fingers through it. Excited, he plunged in. As he swam, the strange water rushed past him, sliding against his skin. He jumped from the water to a small rock a second before he smashed his head into a door-like rock.

"Sarah! Zelda! You might want to get over here!" he shouted as they dove in and swam over, examining the rock. The three pushed it aside slowly and climbed in.

-

Link pulled on a third door with no success. "You know, if we ever hope to get out of the main room, we're gonna have to figure out something." Link stepped to a fourth door and tugged.

Sarah laughed and dug through her bag. Removing from it a key, she handed it to Link. "Would this help?" He grumbled and shoved the key in the lock and smiled at the resounding _click!_

"Couldn't you have gave me that sooner?" Link asked as they stepped through the door into a labyrinth of mazes. Groaning, they wound their way around. After a few dead ends, Link got frustrated and pulled out the Windstone. Remembering what it had supposedly done in his bedroom, he aimed it at the wall and closed his eyes, trying to make the stone do something. With a BANG! The stone wall crumbled and a door was revealed. Smiling, he opened it and walked inside. Instantly, he spotted a person near the other side of the room.

Cautiously, the person walked toward the light. As the light hit the stranger, Link gasped. The person smiled and introduced herself as Ruo. Standing around five feet tall, she was beautiful. So much so that it had Link awed. Her hair, an almost blue color, gently swayed about her shoulders as she walked toward them. She had a nice gait and-

"Link! Stop gawking and let's go! We got to find the stone," Zelda remarked as Ruo laughed.

"Stone? You came all the way here for a stone? Would it happen to be blue?" Ruo asked. Link nodded as she opened her left hand to reveal a polished sapphire-looking rock. "This it?"

"Yes!" Link shouted excitedly. "That's the one! Wait, why do you have it?"

"Long story short," Ruo replied, "this is a stone passed down through my family and my dad didn't want my mom to give it to me so he hid it here and I came to get it."

"Quite a story. I assume then, that you wouldn't want to let us use the stone for a while?" Zelda asked.

"Not a chance. Sorry. What do you need it for anyway?" Link and Sarah pulled out their Stones and Ruo gasped. "The Stones of Knowledge! Air and Earth, yes? You are the ones who are collecting these. I take it you are seeking an answer to the Puzzle upon the Rock?"

Sarah nodded. "I guess. It was a rock, and a mighty good puzzle to boot. So, knowing our cause, what can we do to get the Stone, not to sound rude or anything?"

Ruo's face lit up. "I know! I'll come with you! It'll be an adventure! A perilous journey fraught with danger and, um..."

"Peril at every turn!" Link jumped in. "One you hope to come back alive from and wish for death halfway through!" he shouted.

"Yeah!" Ruo responded.

Sarah laughed as she realized their speech matched word for word what Link had said at the lake. She nodded. "So let's get going then! We got two more to go!"

The new group of four excitedly exited the place and turned south, as Ruo instructed.


	8. Swords and Battles

**A/N: Sorry about the wait! I got distracted with school. I put a funny in this one! And I've introduced enemies! Enemies as in actual dangerouscreatures, not justbats. I won't spoil anything else for you.

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Chapter Eight – Swords and Battles

That night, as everyone slept, there was a strange noise of metal scraping against metal. Slowly, the sound woke Link up. He quickly shot out of the tent, slingshot in hand. Almost instantly, a sword landed at his feet. Picking it up, another sword appeared, this one moving for his head. On instinct, he brought the first sword up, blocking the attack. He sprung up and brandished the sword.

"Well then, it seems Link can fight. Attack!" the person holding the other sword said, as whomever it was attacked.

Link parried the blow, and struck with a side swing. The person blocked it as Link again started a side swing to the left this time. But instead, as he was about to hit the person's block, he brought the sword up and sent it crashing upon the person's head.

"Nice. I expect no less. Now, one more go," the person replied as the sword was swung around and toward Link's head. Link rolled around the person and slashed at their back. Hitting his target, he stood up. The stranger attacked toward Link's left, so Link sprang into the air and sent his sword rattling the stranger's head.

"Very good. Keep the sword. I must leave. Keep practicing." The person slowly was enveloped in fog.

-

The next morning, Link sat up and looked around. He was in his tent, but there was something different. Looking next to his Stone, there was a sword. Suddenly recalling that night's "activities," he took the sword outside.

"Hey Link. Sleep well?" Ruo asked. Link unsheathed the sword and showed it to the three.

"Why don't one of you three tell me? I woke up around midnight and some attacked me with a sword after tossing this at me."

Sarah thought for a moment. "Dreaming, were we?"

Link shook his head. "Nope. I don't usually have a sword-on-sword fight with people in my dreams."

Sarah smiled. "Come on Link, you know what chocolate milk does to your dreams."

"Chocolate milk?" Ruo asked.

"You weren't supposed to tell!" Link shouted.

"Chocolate milk gives you nightmares? Now this is amusing," Zelda said.

"Not exactly nightmares. Last time, he dreamt he had gone swimming with fishpeople," Sarah said.

"Like that helps!" Link shouted. "Now can we stop talking about my problems with chocolate milk and get back on the subject?"

"And that topic was?" Zelda replied.

"The sword! Whether I dreamed it or not, this sword is real."

Ruo took the sword and examined the words written on it. "This is old, I can tell you that. I recognize the make from a book I read. It's a good sword." She handed it back. "Now, let's go get the next Stone, shall we? Thunder should be next, yes?"

"Yeah. Let's get packed up."

-

Within a few hours, as they were approaching a small clearing, a rather large ugly thing appeared, looking a lot like a pig with a spear. Link drew his sword. The thing charged.

"Take this!" Link shouted as his sword smashed into his spear, sending it flying. He then took the sword sideways through the creature. Suddenly, the thing squealed in pain as it vanished in a puff of smoke.

"Nice, Link. You'll be a Swordsman yet!" Ruo proclaimed as Link sheathed the sword and started walking.

A little bit later, another pig-like creature appeared. Grabbing his sword, Link was about to attack when four more appeared. "What have I done to deserve this?" he groaned as he attacked the first one. Dispatching of it, he grabbed its weapon and hurled it through two others that had lined up. Link then sliced the fourth one and jumped behind the fifth, causing the attack by the fourth to kill the fifth. He then grabbed the fifth's spear before it hit the ground and skewered the fourth.

"Wow. That was strange." Link quickly sheathed the sword and they continued on.

Arriving at a strange door in the side of a hill, Link found that it was locked. So, he improvised. He kicked the door down, being as quiet as one could be after kicking a door down. And so they entered, Link's sword at the ready.

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**A/N: Marshmallows and chocolate milk, what a strange person we have here!Well, I'll leave youat that!**


	9. Busting Through

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait! School, work, etc. **

** In this chapter, we Find Link, Zelda, Sarah, and Ruo seeking out the Thunderrock. During the search, Link has busted a door to a houseopen.**

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Chapter Nine – Busting Through

"Well, that's one way to enter a place. And not one I like, mind you," a voice said as Link and crew entered. "If you continue to break into people's homes, may I tell you that it is wise to make sure no one's home." Link just stared.

In front of him stood a child of about twelve giving him advice on how to rob houses. He laughed. "Who are you and where am I?"

The child smiled. "You are in the Hall of Heroes. I am the caretaker, Rau. Yeah, I know, strange name, but you can blame my mum. I'd invite you in, but you seem to have already taken care of that. Seat?" he asked, gesturing to a table near the other side of the room. Link's jaw dropped. There was food covering every bit of that table, and the steam was rising off of choice dishes. Crispy-looking chicken, fluffy creamed potatoes, pizza, stews, pies, and various other delectable food items. With a nod from the host, Link, Ruo, Zelda, and Sarah rushed over and dug in, happy to have something other than burnt marshmallows and stale crackers to fill their stomachs.

After about an hour, Rau stood up and cleared his throat. Link, happily munching on some chicken, instantly stopped halfway through a bite. Sarah leaned over and informed him that it was okay to finish what was in his mouth. He gulped down his last bite and set the remaining chicken on his plate. Everyone laughed.

"Alright, now, down to business. Why are you four here? It's not everyday that a guy and three girls just show up in my house. Actually, this is the first time."

Link was about to start on the story when Zelda glared at him. "You see," she said, "we were looking for some rocks that my friend here collects. He got a little carried away at the prospect of one being here."

Rau nodded. "I see. And what is so important about these rocks?"

"If you hold them just right-" Link started, but then Zelda jumped in.

"He means to say that he likes their color under the light."

"I did?"

"You did," she replied.

Rau stared for a moment, the shook his head. "Anyways, what makes you think I have one of these, um, rocks?"

"There used to be a whole pile of the rocks we're after around here. We figured you might either have one or know where one is," Zelda said.

"All in all, a lucky guess. I do have one lying around here, but I am currently using it. Strangely, the stone's a good conductor. I'm not going to give it away eagerly."

Ruo leaned over and whispered something into Link's ear. He quickly shook his head and whispered, "No way! That's bad, immoral, illegal, horrid, and a few other words like that. I won't let you do that."

Rau's became suddenly interested in Ruo and Link's conversation. "Illegal? What are you two planning?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing."

Rau shrugged. "Suit yourselves. It's almost midnight and I have business to attend to tomorrow, so if you will excuse me..." He stood up. "Oh! You are welcome to stay here for tonight. Third door on the right." He walked down some steps as Link and Crew followed, splitting up at the third door on the right.


	10. A Night On the Couch

**A/N: Finished! Sorry it took so long. Enjoy!

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Chapter Ten – Night on the Couch

Zelda opened the guest room door, gasped, then rushed and quickly, as usual, started a problem. As the other three slowly filtered in, shouts of "Mine!" and "I claimed it first!" echoed from the room.

There was a major problem with Rau's guest room. It was designed with one guest in mind. There was one small bed, a comfy-looking couch, and a recliner. There were also a few dozen books on a bookcase and other assorted furnishings. Zelda had her suitcase spread over almost every inch of the bed, Ruo was laid back on the couch, and Sarah had just popped the footrest on the recliner open. Link groaned.

"What about me? Where do I sleep?" All three girls pointed to his stuff on the floor. He groaned. "You're not serious, right? I mean, there's some inflatable mattress you are hiding or something, yes?" Zelda laughed, Ruo shook her head, and Sarah just sighed and shrugged.

"You gotta be kidding me! We have no idea what on this floor! Uh, not to say Rau is a bad housekeeper, but still, the floor?" he protested. Zelda merely shoved all her stuff except for a few things into her suitcase, closed it, and then sat upon it so she could lock the locks.

Link left the room and almost collided with Rau. "Rau! Just the guy I was looking for! Hey, you wouldn't happen to have, say, an inflatable mattress lying around here? No? A comfy chair? An extra couch? You do?" At Rau's nod toward the living room, Link smiled.

"You're a life saver. It's bad enough I've only had tent walls between those girls and me. I don't know if I could handle a night in the same room. See you tomorrow?"

Rau nodded and continued down the hall, Link going the opposite direction. He very quickly made a discovery about Rau's home. There were no light fixtures besides two lamps and the sun, now gone. Stumbling around in the darkness, he found what he hoped to be the couch, although with his luck, it would probably end up being the kitchen table or something.

Link set up his alarm clock after finding a lamp and making sure it was not in fact, the kitchen table he was getting on. After preparing his makeshift bed, he was about to get settled in when his alarm beeped the time at 10:00 PM. Yawning, he turned the alarm off and as the red digits faded, he got in and fell fast asleep, which has never been a sign of a long sleep.

-

Suddenly, Link shot up, then caught himself as he almost fell off the couch. He could have sworn he heard a door open ever so slightly. Sitting up, he heard the floor creak as someone walked into the living room. Whoever it was slowly approached and sat on the couch. He tried to see who the couch-stealer was, but it was to no avail. The two sat there for a moment, neither saying a word. The only sound in the room was the sounds from breathing. Finally, Link started to reach over to turn on a light to settle this nightly stalemate. Just as he was about to pull the cord, the person took in a breath and began to speak.

"There once was this kid. She was an ordinary kid, although her life wasn't. She grew up in a large house with people to help her with almost every aspect of her life. Sometimes it got so extreme she wouldn't leave the house for weeks on end. Then, on a trip to the mountains, this girl meets another girl. The two become friends. The second girl later invites the first girl to her house. I'm sure you can guess the rest." The stranger wrapped up the strange tale.

Link sat there for a moment, and then replied, "I tried, you know. I raced as fast as I could over there to try. Too late, though. I just want you to know that I tried. That and that I am sorry. Truly. I'm sure that won't make up for the years of anger, but maybe it will help."

The stranger sniffled a bit, scooted over to Link, and answered with a reply of her own. "It will, Link. It will..." And with that, Link suddenly felt the person grab him in a big hug, which he returned. The two sat there for just a tiny bit, one crying on the other's shoulder.

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**A/N: Ta da! It finally happens! I've been hinting at it since Chapter Five, and it has happened. Many can guess who the couch-stealer is, but I shall not approve or disprove anything yet.**


	11. Rude Awakenings

**A/N: Sorry about taking so long. Enjoy!

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Chapter Eleven – Rude Awakenings

That morning, Link awoke to Sarah crouching over him, about to shove what looked like a sausage in his nose. Quickly moving away, he looked around. Everyone else was at the kitchen table, either eating or laughing. Realizing what Sarah had was undeniably a sausage, he snatched it and dropped it in his mouth. He then quickly walked forward, around the lamp, and to the table, grabbing a few sausages for himself.

After finishing the sausages and some bacon, eggs, doughnuts, poptarts, bagels, some biscuits and gravy, a few waffles, and a couple pancakes, Link started packing up his stuff. As he was trying to figure out how he had stored a table into his itty-bitty bag, Rau walked over.

"I heard you all last night."

"Don't talk to _me_," Link defended. "They were the ones in the room making noise."

Rau laughed. "Not that. I was talking about you two. That was a very nice thing you did. As is the tradition in my family, I reward your behavior with that which you so seek." From out of nowhere, Rau produced a burlap sack tied closed and handed it to Link, who took it gratefully.

-

"Well that was nice of him to just give up the rock," Sarah said. "Any idea why?" Zelda and Ruo shrugged as Link smiled just a bit as he shook his head no.

"Let's not look a gift horse in the mouth. We have the Thunderrock, so let's head for the next rock," Ruo said.

Suddenly, Link drew his sword and waved it around. "I am calling mutiny! I am taking control of this ship! To the Lake, I say!"

Zelda stopped and stared at him strangely. "There's no ship."

"Then we shall find a ship! After that, I will mutiny!"

Sarah sighed. "I warned him about the sugar. I warned him."

Suddenly, Link stopped for a moment then fell flat on his face, his sword dropped to the ground next to him. Zelda just stood there. "Get up. You're not fooling anyone." She nudged him with her foot. "Get up."

Sarah bent down and looked at him, then went about checking things such as pulse, temperature, etc. After a few moments, she stood up. "Guys, something's wrong. Link has a pulse, but a faint one. He's burning up and he's barely breathing. We need to do something."

Zelda and Ruo quickly went toward Link's oversized backpack, slowly taking it off him. Sarah removed a few first aid items from her bag and started working, applying a wet cloth to his forehead, double-checking his pulse, and sitting him up against a rock. As Zelda started to move Link's backpack, she noticed a hidden zipper on the back. Quickly unzipping it, she removed a large bag. Emptying it, five glowing rocks fell out.

"The Stones! There's the Thunder one, the Air one, your Earth one, the fire One, and my Water one. What's Link doing with all these?" Ruo asked.

"My...my boat's...sinking. I...can't swim... The...the rock...it's here! I can't...reach it..." Link struggled to mutter. He stopped and let out a breath, obviously not having enough energy to finish.

"Boat? That's got to be one of the weirdest thing he's ever said," Zelda said.

"You've already forgotten the marshmallow incident?" Sarah asked, bemused. She turned back to Link, leaning him against her to make the application of the cooling strips easier. "He needs medical attention. More than I can give him. We need to get him back home."

Zelda nodded. "Agreed, but how? If his condition worsens, he might not need the attention."

Sarah glared at Zelda and then proceeded to try to lift Link up. It didn't work as well as she planned. Dropping Link almost as soon as she picked him up, he fell back down with a thud. Ruo bent down and started searching for long sticks.

"Not to intrude on your search," Zelda said, "but may I know what in the world you're searching for?"

"Sticks. Good, long ones. Strong, but somewhat flexible. That and I'll need some fabric."

Sarah nodded and pulled out some spare material that always seemed to be in her pack. Taking one of the sticks Ruo had found, she started fastening the stick to the fabric, much to the wonder of Zelda.

"If you don't mind me asking, what are you doing _now_?"

"Making something we can put him on so we don't have to carry him everywhere," Sarah responded as she finished one side of the thing.

Soon, the stretcher was finished, and Link was curled up on top of it. Ruo and Zelda were pulling him along, while Sarah was scouting ahead to find their way home. The sky had darkened and Sarah was trying to figure out if they could afford Link getting caught out in the rain. After a moment of pondering that and a bit more scouting, she yelled back to the other two.

"Hey! We can't risk Link getting pneumonia on top of whatever this is! There's a cave nearby! We can stay there until the storm clears up!" She worked her way to the cave, followed by Zelda, Ruo, and Link on the stretcher.

-

After an hour in the cave, Zelda looked outside. There wasn't much to see. All outside was right now was rain, mud, rocks, and trees. The storm showed no sign of clearing up. Frustrated, she sat back down.

"Hey, Zel. That's the fourth time you've checked on the outside conditions in the past half hour alone. What's wrong?" Sarah asked.

"I just wanna get back to town, ok?" Zelda responded defensively.

"Whatever. Let's just try to rest," Sarah commented.

"I'm afraid any 'rest' will have to wait," Ruo said. "Come here and take a look at this! And bring Link too!"

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**A/N: Bum bum bum! Don't get mad at me for putting Link in a life-or-death situation! Wait until you read next chapter before you get mad!**


	12. Help From the Fairy

**A/N: Hi! Here's the next chapter. Enjoy.

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Chapter Twelve – Help From the Fairy

Zelda and Sarah quickly followed Ruo, Link in tow. Over the past few hours, Link's condition had worsened. He did not make a sound except for a muffled, pained gasp caught in his throat every once in a while. His temperature had skyrocketed. The only move he had made was when he did his best to curl up into a little ball. Ruo led them to a large opening in the cave wall. Making sure everyone was ok, besides Link, the group pushed forward...

...Into one of the most beautiful places on earth. The first thing anyone would notice is that almost everything is blue. The walls were a perfect cyan while the floor boasted a sea blue tint. The next thing someone would notice is the walls. Brilliant colors flowed across the walls, starting with a fiery red blazing down to a gentle blue then to a deep forest green, then to almost any color or hue in the rainbow. The third thing one notices in the room is the humongous clam shell. It itself a light blue, the shell seems perfect. The fourth and final thing anyone could notice in this room is a tiny but bright light in the center of the shell. Ruo walked forward, but then the light spoke.

"Welcome to my domain. I am the Great Fairy of the Fountain, dedicated to help weary travelers. How could I help you?"

Ruo turned to Link, then back to the fairy. "Great Fairy, I ask you to help our sickened friend. There is little we can do and we are afraid of what might happen if he is not treated."

The light zoomed over to Link, flew around him for a moment, then returned to the shell. "Your friend is in a very bad condition. I may not be able to help him too much." The fairy suddenly grew, becoming around twice the size of Ruo. The giant fairy flew over to Link and picked him up. She examined him for a moment more. She laughed and started glowing a green color. The coloring seemed to pool around her arms where she held Link. Slowly, the green coloring gathered from the giant fairy into Link. As this happened, a low rumbling could be heard from deeper inside the cave. The multi-colored walls turned a green shade. A green light seemed to emanate from Link's body. Suddenly, there was a flash and the green light was replaced by a blinding yellow color. Above Link and the Fairy, a giant yellow triangle was forming. The triangle shrank and shot into Link's body, causing him to writhe in pain. Just as suddenly as all this happened, it stopped. The walls and surrounding areas returned to their regular shadings. Link stopped moving once more and the Fairy laid him down before quickly shrinking to the simple glowing light.

"I have done all I can for your friend. I have done all that can de done for him. He will recover, although if he will be the same, I do not know. Give him a respite and we shall see." The Fairy vanished.

Happily obliged to take the Fairy's advice, the team set up camp and went to sleep.

-

"Wake up, Link. Wake up."

"Wha?" Link said, opening his eyes. "I'm awake, I'm awake. Five more minutes."

"You do not have even a minute to spare." Link quickly recognized the same mysterious stranger that had attacked him. "You have been chosen and you are nowhere ready." The stranger jerked him up into a standing position.

"Talk about a good way to wake someone up. Now, can I get dressed?" Link asked, noticing he was in his pajamas.

"Did you not hear me? There's no time." The stranger grabbed Link's arm and practically dragged him out of the cave. When they were outside, the stranger handed Link his sword.

"More of this sword stuff?"

"Link, you have been chosen to play a very important part in upcoming events. You must learn how to at least properly defend yourself. Now, defend!" the stranger shouted, lunging at Link.

Link jumped out of the blade's way. "Watch it. I would like not to get skewered. Besides, I just woke up and have no idea where I am."

"Do you think that someone trying to kill you would wait until you were wide awake?" the stranger queried. "Now defend!"

Link moved his sword to intersect one of the stranger's slashes, but to no avail. The sword slid past his and grazed his right shoulder. A small line of red appeared below the ripped fabric. "Hey!"

"Next time it might not just be a scratch. Again!" The stranger commanded as Link was assaulted by swift slashing and stabbing attacks. Somehow, Link managed to redirect most of the attacks, but soon, there were several rips and tears across his clothes.

After a good deal of the stranger advancing and Link fending off many of the attacks, the stranger stopped. "Return inside. Do not mention this to anyone. I will be back tomorrow." Just like last time, the stranger vanished in a convenient fog.

-

Later that morning, Link was getting dressed. Having avoided suspicion by saying the cuts and bruises were from a nasty fall on the rocks near his tent, Link's morning had been more or less uneventful. Everyone was overjoyed that he was alright and said that they should pack and head off back to Sarah's lake to figure out exactly what was up with these rocks. Link immediately agreed, and so he was in his tent repacking.

"Link! Hurry up in there! Don't make me come in there and make it easier for you."

"I'm working on it. It's kinda hard to get dressed, pack, and make sure my cuts are healing, you know."

"Don't let it be too hard or else I'll send Zelda in there!"

Link smiled. "I'm almost done!"

-

Later that evening, Link, Zelda, Sarah, and Ruo were off again, this time heading toward Sarah's house. It had been a mostly boring day, them stopping only to eat some Ramen noodles, which Link thoroughly enjoyed. Around nightfall, Zelda declared that it would be best to set up camp. Camp was soon set up, food cooking. After everyone ate, Link and Co. went to their separate tents.

Around midnight, Link was awoken by being hoisted up on his feet, his sword shoved in his hand. Following the cloaked stranger outside, Link spent another night getting cut and bruised, although he did manage to get a decent attack in, leaving the stranger with a nice scratch on the side.

"You are learning. Good."

"That's right, I'm learning. Learning your attack style. Are we done now?" The stranger nodded, mumbled something about tomorrow night, then faded away in the usual mist.

-

Later that day, Link and co. were on the road again. Planning on arriving at the Lake tomorrow, Link could hardly contain his excitement. They had the rocks, now it was time to see what they could be used for. Letting his mind wander, he imagined the rocks would lead to a cave full of gold and treasure that they could sell and make lots of money. Money for arcades, money for amusement parks, money for games! Even money for-

"Watch it, Link!" Ruo said as she stood up from their collision. "Let's learn how to walk all nice now, before you end up hurting someone."

Link grumbled and playfully shoved Ruo forward. She stumbled forward and fell to the ground in mock pain. "The pain! The agony! The suffering!" she cried, clutching her side as if she had injured herself. She stood back up and lunged toward Link. "You'll pay!"

Link laughed and rolled out of the way, turning around and grabbing her around her waist. "Oh really? Pay for this!" he shouted as he did his best to pick her up. With Ruo slightly in the air, Link tried to put her atop a medium-sized rock. Ruo sat up and laughed.

"Oh no!" she said sarcastically. "What am I going to do? Oh, I know! This!" she yelled as she jumped from the rock and onto Link. After a moment of rolling around in the dirt, Ruo recoiled as Link pushed her off of him. Wincing, she stood up, apparently in real pain. Link stood up with her.

"You okay? I didn't mean to hurt you," he said.

"You didn't. Just an old injury flaring up. I'll be fine. Next time you may not be so lucky, though," she replied, smiling menacingly. She put her pack back on and helped Link with his.

"You two finished now?" Zelda asked. As Ruo and Link nodded, the company set off again on their way.

Bored with walking, Link fished out his sword from his pack and buckled it to his belt. Telling everyone he'd be back soon and there was no need to stop, he quickly departed into the woods. Walking along between the trees, he waited until he could no longer see or hear the group. Link sat his backpack down and drew his sword.

"Alright, I know you're around here somewhere. It's daylight so there'll be no lurking in the shadows for you. Now, show yourself!" Link shouted.

There was a flash of motion to his right and he turned, only to come face to face with the mysterious stranger. "No need to yell, I can hear you just fine. Now, are you here for some daylight training?"

"You've got to be kidding. I spend all night getting bruised and cut, so why should I have it happed to me during the day?"

"For the simple reason that you wish to improve on your skill. I am sure you agree when I say I am good, but I am not anywhere near as good as many others in this world. Soon, your training with me will be finished, and you will continue with a new master."

"Master? Since when were you my master?" Link asked.

"I was your master the day I did this," the stranger said, grabbing Link's arm, The stranger slid Link's sleeve up, revealing a healing cut. "And I will be your master until you manage to at least do more than graze me once. Now, I assume you'll either be going now or you'll fight. Make up your choice." The stranger turned around and walked forward a few feet.

Wrong move, Link thought. He charged forward with his sword, only to have the stranger spin around, block his attack, slash at his left leg, and send him sprawling to the ground. Link stood up and quickly blocked a slash from the stranger.

"You're learning. Good. Now, defend!" the stranger shouted and preformed a sideswipe. Link swung his sword to his side and almost smirked as the stranger's sword slid off past him. This time Link was ready. He again lunged forward, but quickly rolled past the stranger and slashed the unguarded back.

The stranger grunted and turned around slowly. "That's going to take a while to heal. Master's not going to be pleased with that..."

"Master? _You_ have a master?" Link asked in amazement.

"Of course. Everyone has a master. I'm yours, Master's mine. Even Zelda and Sarah have masters."

"Since when? Last time I checked, neither could even hold a sword properly?"

"Their parents. Just because they have masters doesn't mean that the master is a master of swordcraft. My Master's better at the Bow than anything."

Link nodded, understanding. Then, realizing what a position he had right now, Link took his sword and just grazed the stranger's right shoulder. "That's for your first stroke. Now, are we done?"

"For now." The stranger stepped backwards, the familiar fog appearing from nowhere. Link shrugged and quickly started bandaging his cut. Man, was he glad the stranger's sword wasn't too sharp. Any deeper and a muscle could have been cut. Link gently placed some gauze on the injury and tied it on with some available string. He pulled his pant leg over the bandage, only to realize his pants now had a strange white area on it. Giving up, Link stood up, sheathed his sword, grabbed up his pack, and headed back to the path.

Easily catching up with the group, Link nodded once to Zelda and Sarah to acknowledge them without interrupting their conversation. Noticing the absence of Ruo, Link turned toward Sarah and, during a lull in their conversation, asked where Ruo was.

"Bathroom break. Why?" Sarah asked.

Link shrugged. "Curious, that's all." The group trudged along; the only change was Ruo rejoining them, which went by barely noticed.

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**A/N: A slightly jumpy chapter, butI think it's alright. Practically wrote itself. The stranger's identity will soon be revealed.**


	13. Riddle Solved!

**A/N: Sorry it took so long on the update, but when I started Chapter Fourteen, I pushed the wrong button and it saved over this one. I went and re-typed it, which took me a while because I was swamped with homework with Honors Biology I and Geometry. You get a lot of work in those classes... Anyway, enough of my complaining.****

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Chapter Thirteen – Riddle Solved!

"Is it just me, or is this trip getting really boring?" Link suddenly asked. "I mean, we've been walking through this forest for who knows how long. I'm sure I've seen that boulder before."

"Stop complaining, Link. It's bad enough that you _did_ see that boulder before, but the fact that you're saying it is worse," Ruo said. She grabbed a large vine and, after dropping her stuff on the ground, quickly scaled the vine and disappeared from view. After a minute, she dropped back into view.

"That way." She pointed past a group of trees. "I figure if we keep walking, we'll make good time." They took her word for it.

-

After a good deal of traveling, and getting lost a dozen or so more times, the four eventually emerged next to the lake. Link happily tossed his stuff down and ran to the water's edge. Suddenly, he stopped. "Anyone remember where the cave is?"

"You gotta be kidding me... You don't remember?" Zelda asked incredulously.

"Hey, you're the one who found it."

"Stop arguing you two. Just help me find it," Sarah interjected.

Link quickly began scouring the area. At one point, he saw something. Instantly jumping into the freezing water, he swam to the bottom. Finding nothing, he resurfaced.

"Man, that's cold!"

"Oh joy... Now, you're sure we have to get into the water?" Zelda asked.

"What, cold water not good enough for you?" Ruo asked as she dived in.

"No, it's fine enough, just too cold," Zelda responded.

Ruo laughed as she dived down. She quickly resurfaced. "I think I found it."

The four dived in, following Ruo to a small hole in the wall. Link swam in, resurfacing in a small cave. He went to the Rock in the center of the room as the girls surfaced.

Link quickly took out his Stone and placed it in the groove that was colored white. Zelda looked up.

"Wait before you start putting things in places," she said.

"Aw, come on, Zellie; it can't hurt. Put yours in."

Cautiously, Zelda placed the two she had into the colored slots. Ruo and Sarah followed suit.

Link just started at the Rock, waiting for something to happen. "So, um, when does this, whatever it is, happen?"

As if on cue, a white flash and something resembling an explosion and an earthquake shot across the area. Instinctively, the four dropped to the ground, grabbing the nearest solid thing. The events passed as suddenly as they had come. Link, always the courageous one, stood up and looked around. Noticing nothing too out of place, he walked over to the exit, ready to leave now that the excitement's over.

-

The four of them split up at the path to Link's house. He said his goodnights, went inside, and quickly collapsed onto the couch, asleep.


	14. Changes

**A/N: I make up for my lateness with TWO updates! In less than five minutes of each other! Well, here's hoping I'll get reviews, although I do appreciate the review from Wolfie, lol, and look forward to more.

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Chapter Fourteen – Changes

Link awoke to a rooster crowing. Wondering when his neighbors got a rooster, he got out of bed, got dressed, and, on a whim, grabbed his sword and strapped it to his back. He also grabbed a block of wood he was working on turning into a shield. He opened the door and stepped outside, only to be bowled over by Sarah, who, upon seeing him, grabbed him in a hug.

"Link! Oh, thank the heavens you're alright!" she exclaimed.

"Calm down, Sarah. What's wrong?" he responded.

"Haven't you seen? Have you looked outside at all?"

"I just woke up. I've barely had time to get dressed."

"Look!" she shouted, pointing outside.

Instead of the usual setting of suburban houses stretching across the road, there were brick houses here and there. Instead of the usual hustle and bustle of town, there were just four carpenters working on a building and a guard guarding a path upwards to a large mountain.

"Sarah, what happened to the village?"

"You think this is freaky? Wait until you see the castle that appeared overnight."

"A castle? You gotta be kidding me..."

"That's still nothing. Today, we were investigating the castle, and one of the guards saw us. He ran over and started fumbling with his words. Somehow, he managed to say that 'Princess Zelda needs to be in the castle, not wandering the streets.'"

"_Princess_? Talk about an unneeded ego boost. Where are they now?"

"Zelda's at the castle."

"And Ruo?"

"Some mermaid-like guy ran up and grabbed her, saying that her father was requesting her presence. Called her Princess Ruto."

"Ruto? Strange. And what about you?"

"Only thing different is I'm shorter than usual. I also have a strange craving for candy and ice cream."

"Eh, join the club on the food bit. Now, we need to figure out what's going on." Link drew his sword. "Onward! To your forest-house!"

-

After several minutes traversing the new landscape, Link and Sarah arrived at a densely wooded area. As soon as they entered, a mob of little kids surrounded them.

"Who dares enter the realm of the Kokiri?" a boy said.

"Mike? Is that you?" Sarah looked at him closely.

"Never heard of him. Name's Mido, Leader of the Kokiri. And who might you be?"

"Sarah."

"Link."

"Link? As in Link who left with Navi and never came back, even after she did?" As if on cue, a blue ball of something shot through the air.

"LINK!" The blue ball materialized into a fairy. "Oh Link, you're back! You're alive!"

"Hello? And who might you be?" Link asked.

"Link? You don't remember me? Saving the Deku Tree, the Gorons and the Zoras? Rescuing Zelda from that meanie Ganon? You don't remember?"

"Nope, sorry. Never even heard of Goras and Zorons."

"They're Gorons and Zoras!" the fairy said and took off, obviously upset.

Link turned to Sarah, confusion registering on his face. She shrugged as they looked around. Everywhere they went, the group of kids followed them. They never said anything, save the time they tried to enter a small pathway. Mido jumped in front of them.

"You're not allowed in there unless the Great Deku Tree says so."

As if on cue, there was a low rumbling and a deep voice echoed towards them. "Let them pass, Mido. Link and I have important matters to discuss." Mido hid.

Link and Sarah walked along a flowering path to a large clearing dwarfed by an old, very large tree towering over everything.

"Link! And Sarah, if I am not mistaken, yes? I thought so. I see you're still tall. Give it a while. However, we have important matters to discuss. Sit, and I shall explain," the tree said.

-

"And so, you see, when you brought the Stones together, the curse was lifted. All traces of life as you remember it were erased, except for you two, me, Rau, Ruo, and Zelda. Even as we speak, we still change. Sarah, I believe you have been shrinking, yes? That is because you are not a Hylian! You are a Kokiri, a child of the forest. In a bit, you will shrink to the size of Mido and the others." The Deku Tree lifed its gaze from them. "NAVI!"

Instantly, the fairy from before, flew to them. "Yes, Great Deku Tree?"

"I believe you know Link? He has lost all knowledge of anything. Please go with him once more until he does remember."

"You'll be calling in a favor, you know."

"I figure I have enough in reserve."

"No memory whatsoever?"

"None."

"Might as well start from scratch." She flew over to Link. "Hi! My name is Navi and I'll be your Fairy today. Anything on the agenda?"

"Well, I was hoping to visit Zelda and Ruo."

"Zelda as in Princess Zelda, yes?"

"I guess."

"Alrighty! Sarah, you coming?" She nodded and the new group started toward the large castle.

-

As Sarah, Link, and Navi entered the town, they were almost slammed by a large cart full of milk bottles. Stepping around it, they made their way to the large castle up ahead. They snuck past guards, following the path Navi showed them. Passing through the courtyard, they entered a small area. In the middle stood Zelda, but not the Zelda Link was used to seeing. Replacing her usual outfit was a long dress of strange material, fancifully designed. On the front, the symbol on the gates to the castle was emblazoned on the fabric. Three golden triangles which, together, formed a larger triangle.

"Link. You return."

"How's life treating ya?"

"Let's see, first I get dragged into a palace, then I get shoved into a large room and told to change clothes to something more 'suitable,' then I finally get a chance to escape, but only to here. So, it's actually been pretty good. What's with the fairy?"

"She doesn't remember either?" Navi asked.

"Nope. None of us do," Sarah answered. Suddenly, she shrank about half a foot.

"Well, that's unique," Link remarked, looking down at Sarah.

"Shut up Link. Let's go back to the Deku Tree and see if he can tell us what's next, as well as where Ruo is."

"Oh, I have a good guess where she is," Navi casually commented.

"Where?" Link asked.

"She's probably down the river in the Zora's Domain," Navi said. "And looking at Sarah, you're not gonna recognize her right off the bat. That I promise."

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**A/N: My updates are done for now. Hopefully, I can pull out of this writing slump and bring the mysterious stranger back in. Maybe soon we'll know who he, or she, is... Maybe...**


	15. Ruto

**A/N: Sorry it took so long to update, but I found a new way, so I might update faster. I bought a TI-84+ SE, so I'm trying it on the calculator. Three quarters of this was written on there. And seeing as it was on the calculator, there may be a few mistakes.**

**I also want to apologize to my friends whom I've talked about this so much they'll probably hit me next time I mention it to them.**

**Luckily for what readers I have, I have a lot ofpieceswritten on it, including several major parts, of which I've _also_ been talking my friends' ears off nonstop. Well, enjoy this chapter.

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Chapter Fifteen - Ruto

Link looked at Navi. "What do you mean?"

"I mean exactly what I said. As Saria changes, so does Ruto. Since she's only shrinking, I figure Ruto will look at least similar to the one you knew. I can take you to her."

"Works for me," Link replied. "Where to first?"

"I assume we'd go upriver past Kakariko and to the base of the river?" Zelda asked.

"I see someone's brushed up on their geography?" Navi returned.

"Freakishly tall woman forced me to."

"Ah. You've met Impa I see," Navi replied with a laugh. "Well, in any case, you are right. The river starts in the Zora Domain and flows through the area to Lake Hylia and also fills the castle moat. Shall we go?"

"Yeah," Zelda responded, but stopped as a shadow covered them.

"Planning another escapade, I see. I will tell you, as I have told you countless times before, that your father has ordered you to stay here." The shadow belonged to a tall woman dressed in strange armor, a giant eye etched on it. Due to the position of the sun, the three of them could not see who she was. Navi, however easily recognized her.

"Aw, come on Impa! You're not really gonna stop us, are you? Especially since I'm here, something must be important."

"I agree, but the fact is that she has been ordered here."

"Pretty please?"

Impa rolled her eyes. "No, princess, stop, come back, please," she said in a monotonous voice and followed with a wink. Zelda and crew took off running.

-

"This it?" Zelda asked.

"Looks like it," Navi replied. "Let's go."

Zelda, Link, and Sarah quickly followed Navi into the first waterfall. A pathway curved around a bend inside, but Link was paying more attention to the giant waterfall cascading from above, drowning out almost every sound. Link hurried along to catch back up with the others Navi led them up a path and into the room that was the source of the waterfall. In front of them, atop a platform, sat a giant fish-like thing. Navi and Zelda moved forward, stopping on a raised area. The giant fish spoke.

"Ah, Princess Zelda. What warrants your gracious visit?"

"I came to see Ruto," she responded.

"Ah. I am afraid my daughter is indisposed currently."

"I am sorry to hear that. Indisposed how, may I ask?"

"She has been overcome with an illness," the king said, avoiding the question.

"An illness? Pray tell, what kind of illness has befallen the poor princess?"

"I am not sure, but it is not anything you need to worry about."

Suddenly, Link jumped in front of Zelda. He drew his sword and pointed it at the king.

"What did you do with Ruo? Where is she?" Link shouted.

"Normally, you would be put to death for such an atrocity, but in light of your services, I shall forgive you," he said. The king then sighed. "My daughter is probably at the shop. She seems to be in a state of shock. Maybe you can cheer her up."

The four of them followed the path to the shop. They walked in and instantly were asked if they needed any help. Zelda shook her head and looked around. Her gaze fell upon a person huddled up in a corner.

"Ruo?"

The person stood up, and Link was even shocked. Instead of the Ruo he knew, she had drastically changed. Her skin, light as it had been, had become abnormally white with deep blue sploches. To add to the surprise, she also seemed to be growing fins of some sort, and it was obvious that she was not enjoying these changes.

"Whats happening to me?" she asked in a whisper.

"You're transforming."

"I figured as much, but into what?" she responded.

"A fish-thing?"

"That sounds lovely," Ruo remarked sarcastically. She slumped onto the ground, leaning against the wall.

"Maybe it won't be that bad."

"Thanks, Link, but what's so good about a fish-thing?"

Sarah slowly walked forward. "Yeah, well, look at me."

"Whoa. What happened to you?"

"Same thing as what's happening to you. I'm reterning to normal."

"You call this normal? Last time I checked, neither shrinking nor growing fins is exectly what I call normal."

"Actually..." Sarah started, and proceeded to tell Ruo what the Deku Tree had told them.

-

"So, I'm supposed to be a fish-girl?"

"Seems so. The problem is, our memories are still shifting back, so we only remember bits and pieces for now."

"Did it ever occur to anyone that I don't want to be a fishy?"

"Ruo, like I told you, this isn't something we can just stop. Soon, you'll be just like all the others, with a few exceptions, of course."

"A few exceptions? Like what?"

"You'll see..." Sarah replied and started to walk off.

"Wait up! What do you mean I'll see?" Ruo shouted after her.

"Well then..." Zelda remarked. "Now what?"

"Follow me." Link took off up the stairs.

Once they reached the top, Link ran up to the edge of the giant waterfall. He looked at Zelda then backflipped off the edge.

"Link!" Zelda shouted, running to the edge. Down below, there was a resounding splash that echoed throughout the cave.

"Come on, Zelda!" Link shouted back. Zelda jumped off the edge toward Link.

"Ha! You can't catch me!" he taunted.

"Oh really?" she fired back, rounding on him.

He only smiled as he dived down. Moments later, Link resurfaced under her, wrapping his arms around her stomach. Pulling her close to him, he leaned forward and whispered "Yeah, really." He held her there, close to him for only a second more, then released her, heading back underwater.

Zelda, however, was too fast for him. She grabbed his leg and pulled him back up. "Noone bests me and lives!" she shouted in mock rage. She flung a sheet of water at him. Ever the agile one, Link dived quickly and resurfaced out of range. In responce, Zelda dived. Link looked for any sign of where she would come up, but before he could react, Zelda surfaced directly under him. Instead of being pushed away, Link ended up perched on her shoulders. She fell back, dropping him into the water.

"Having fun, are we?" a voice asked. "Either way, my princess," it said, grabbing Zelda, "you're coming with me!"

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**A/N: Enjoyed it, I hope. The story shall continue soon...**


	16. Castle Showdown!

**A/N: Hi everyone! I'm sorry about taking so long of this chappie, but the computer got a total wipe and everything vanished so I had to wait to get it off my calc to comp. Good for you, though, because it's up to Nineteen typed, just gotta computer it.**

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**Chapter Sixteen- Castle Showdown!**

"Zelda!"

"Ah, I see the Hero of Time is your bodyguard. Well, this should make for an interesting fight." The stranger tossed Zelda onto the ground next to the wall and grabbed Link, throwing him onto the shore. "I assume you're gonna fight me for her, then?"

"You leave me no choice!" Link said as he drew his sword. "What do you want with her?"

"To see her brought to justice in the court of the One True King."

"She's the princess!"

"And her justice shall be final."

"Why would her father want to sentence her?"

"The King has no daughter. The False King who now rules shall be soon slain."

"Honestly, I doubt it, and if the king's a false king, then who's the so-called 'true' king?"

"The True King is Ganon, King of Thieves and Lord of the Gerudo," the stranger declared.

"Ganon?" Link asked. Suddenly, as if in a dream, everything began to fade. A long tower appeared with Link halfway up it. As if pulled by a strange force, he continued up the tower. Reaching the top, he drew his sword. Link opened the doors and entered a large room with an organ, music echoing in the room. The man playing it turned to look at Link. The second the Gerudo looked at him, Link felt an overwhelming evil surge over him.

"So, the Hero of Time has spaced out. If you plan to fight, now would be a good time."

Link looked at him. Without giving the stranger a chance to react, Link swung his sword, He slammed it into the stranger's side, but instead of being surprised, the stranger had been ready.

The stranger laughed, removing a black sword from underneath his cloak where Link had swung. "I am too smart for you and you know it." He charged forward, slashing in a left-right-stab-sweep technique.

Link blocked each, then blocked a few more attacks, each obviously trying to knock him off balance. After a few more blocks, and a few non-lethal blows, Link stopped for a second. "Your fighting style is familiar."

"As it should be." The stranger attacked Link with a downward slash, but Link easily blocked it.

"Oh, come on! That's my favorite move!" Link retorted, bringing his sword in a defensive stance, preparing a plan.

The stranger rained blow after blow upon Link, who was simply blocking each attack.

"So what, is little Linky gonna go down defending the pathetic princess? Is she even worth protecting? Poor, frail, weak, spoiled princess brat!"

"You can insult my intelligence, you can insult my name, but you cant insult my Zelda!" he roared, slamming his sword into the stranger's sword, which went flying. Link brought the point of his sword to the stranger's covered face.

"Now what? You can't kill me."

"Oh really? And why not?"

"Because..." the stranger said, and slipped through the wall, vanishing.

Link took no time investigating the wall, but instead ran to Zelda.

"Are you okay?"

"Fine enough." She smiled. "Thanks."

Suddenly, a knight jumped into the water and sloshed to Zelda. "Princess! Come with me to the castle. You'll be safe there."

Not wanting any more fights, Zelda followed the knight, Link following them both.

-

"Wait up!" Link shouted after the Knight. Once outside the Domain, the Knight had gotten on a horse and rode off. Link tried to keep up, but he was not as fast as a horse. He collapsed onto the ground, leaning against a low wall that, for some apparent reason, ran through the field. "Remind me to never chase after a horse."

"You'd think I wouldn't need to tell you," Navi replied, landing on the wall beside him.

"Yeah, but still, at least I tried to do something. I'm going to rest for a minute, then on to the castle."

"And what makes you think they'll let you in?"

"Nothing make me think they'll let me in, but I might as well try." He stood up, turned toward the castle, and took a step.

-

"You gotta let me in!" Link shouted.

The guard glared at him. "And why is that?"

Link stared at the castle guard dumbfounded. He had a point. Link shrugged, turned around, and came face-to-face with the cloaked stranger. He jumped back and drew his sword, sending the guard scurrying to the castle.

"Sorry about not finishing our fight earlier, but there was another issue I had to attend to." The stranger drew his own sword.

"No worries. We can pick it back up," Link replied, sliding into a defensive stance.

"Oh no you don't," the stranger said as his sword darted around Links, knocking it out of his hands. Link grabbed his sword just in time to block a blow that would have otherwise split his head.

"Any last words?" the stranger asked, lunging for Link.

"Yeah, I have a few choice words," he growled as he narrowly avoided the lunge. "Other than those, I'd like to know who you are."

"I'll tell you when I win." The stranger continued to launch off lunges and slashes.

"And if you don't?" Link asked, blocking every attack.

"I'll reveal myself and never bother you again. Sound like a good bet?"

"Good enough," Link replied, barraging the stranger with random attacks, most of which he himself couldn't block. Many attacks landed on the stranger's sword, but several smashed into the stranger.

"Well, well, well. It seems you're not as strong as I thought you were. Try this on for size!" Link shouted, bringing his sword to his side. Link jumped in the air, spinning around in a circle, then brought the sword down on the stranger, sending him stumbling back. Link once again pointed the sword at the stranger.

"Once again, you cannot kill me."

"And once again, why not?"

"Because," the stranger grabbed the top right of his cloak, "if you kill me, you kill YOURSELF!" Dark Link shouted, throwing his cloak in the air.

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**A/N: Well, here's something to read until the rest are finished. Have fun!**


	17. Dark Link

A/N: Sorry it took so long! I've said that way too many times... For the record, I have this story finished up to Chapter Twenty, and clips all the way up to the literal end (yes there's an end, and you all will hate me for it) and past that, even. So, this story should fall together soon, and the side story should start up very soon. Wish me luck, then read on!**

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**Chapter Seventeen – Dark Link**

Link backed away, all but dropping his sword. "Y-you're, you're me?"

"Don't insult me, I'm not you. I just look like you. Dark Link's the name."

"Dark Link? You're not me, yet half your name is mine. That seems strange, even for a Dark anyone," Link replied.

"Shush. My name is mine and mine alone. I've been me for almost eighteen years now and you've not."

"Well, I've been _me_ for almost eighteen years. Does that count?"

"Shut up and defend yourself!" Dark Link shouted and struck at Link, who brought his sword up to block.

"You know, even a strategic hack-and-slash technique is no good. Every move you've made, I know. The only way you'll hurt me is using moves I don't know, which means you wouldn't know them either." Link took his sword in a swinging motion around to slam into Dark Link, but, due to the swirl, the sword shot toward his head. Dark Link pulled his sword up and blocked the sword, but Link saw that Dark Link was, for a second, unsure of himself as the swords reverberated along their handles.

"What, not as strong as you used to be?"

Dark Link merely grunted as he brought his sword to bear. "Are you gonna fight, or are you gonna talk?"

Link put his shield back in his pack and two-handed his sword. "I see no problem, doing both. However, if you're not strong enough to do both, I guess we can just fight."

The two went at it, sparks from the swords flying everywhere. Link was a little slower than Dark Link, giving Dark Link an obvious advantage, but it was also obvious that Link's blows were weakening Dark Link. After a minute of this, Dark Link looked up at the castle and pulled back.

"Uh-oh."

"What now?"

"Guards." Dark Link started to run, but Link stopped him.

"Oh no you don't!" Link countered, knocking Dark Link onto the ground.

"Link: What's going on?" Zelda shouted as she and four guards approached.

"There's a crazy guy trying to kill me!" Dark Link replied, standing up.

"What? She was talking to me:" Link responded.

"There's two of you?" Zelda asked.

"No, there's only one of me, he's an imposter:" Dark Link said.

"Knock it off, you fake!"

"So, I assume we can't do this the easy way. Fine." Zelda looked at them both. "Well, any ideas?"

"Princess, look at me. Don't you recognize me?" Dark Link asked.

"You both look identical, so here's what were gonna do. You each get a chance to plead your case."

Dark Link looked to her. "Zelda, I'm the real Link. The phony over there just wants to kill me and take my place so he can kill you too! Don't you remember what I look like? Of all people, I thought I could count on you to remember me…"

Link glared at him.

Zelda turned to Link, trying to stay calm and objective. "And your proof?"

Link sat down, thought for a moment, and then started laughing.

"This is no laughing matter," Zelda said.

"Agreed. Instead of arguing, may I ask a question instead?"

"Make it quick."

"Here goes. How many tree branches does it take to destroy a porch?"

Zelda smiled. "Only one," she said as she walked to Link. "Is that all you have to say?"

"Well, I would ask how many kids it takes to knock down a branch, but it's probably redundant by now."

Zelda laughed as she wrapped her arms around Link, embracing him tightly. "I'm sorry I doubted you…"

"You did what needed to be done."

Guards, seize the imposter!" Zelda demanded, pointing to Dark Link. The four guards surrounded him, yet he merely laughed.

"A shadow cannot be caught," he said as he sunk into the ground, his clothes fading to black before vanishing.

"I want a twenty-four hour alert for the Link copy. Split shifts and double up. Keep well-rested, our greatest enemy is drowsiness," Zelda commanded, looking to each guard. "Link, come with me."

"Okie-dokies." Link followed Zelda into the giant castle.

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A/N: I'm not the best swordplay writer, or any fight scene, but I try. Hopefully, I got it somewhat close to real. So now I shall post this one and maybe work on fixing Chapter Eighteen, Banishment! 


	18. Banishment!

**Chapter Eighteen - Banishment**

"What exactly happened down there?" Zelda asked Link as soon as they got inside the castle.

"That guy who tried to kidnap you at the Domain came back. We locked blades for a bit until I had him at swordpoint. He then ripped off his cloak and revealed that he was Dark Link, in effect, me from another world. So, we fought some more, then you all showed up."

"I see. I am sorry for not being able to figure you out from the start."

"You did what you needed to do. Besides," Link replied, a smile forming on his face. "You never know if you picked the wrong one!" he shouted as he lunged toward her, laughing. Knocking her down onto the carpet, Link sat on her as he proceeded to tickle her unmercifully.

"All right! I give! I give!" she shouted, laughing loudly.

Suddenly, the door was flung open and a man entered, looking none too happy. "What is going on in here? You, get off of my daughter!" he roared, rounding on Link.

Link jumped up. "I meant no harm, sir. We were just playing around."

"Leave the castle at once!"

"But father, he's my friend!" Zelda exclaimed.

"From what I saw when I walked in here, I'd say you're pretty close friends. Too close, I might add."

"Dad, I'm not a little girl anymore! I can take care of myself!" she shouted.

"Not if taking care of yourself involves that!"

"That what? We were just playing around! You know, having a good time? It can't be too foreign to you."

"As long as this is my castle, you will follow my rules."

"Well, then, um, I'll stay with Link!" she replied suddenly.

Link just stood there, dumbfounded.

"You're gonna what?" he and the king asked at the same time.

"I'm gonna stay with Link," she said again, more sure of herself.

"Oh really? Are you sure he'll have you?"

"Zelda knows that she's welcome anytime," Link said casually, as if it was an understood thing. Then, he started to comprehend what had just happened. Zelda was coming to stay with him!

"Very well, go with him and we'll see if you prefer the palace, even with your 'playtime restrictions'."

Zelda grabbed Link's arm and pulled him from her room and out of the castle.

-

"Thanks again for letting me stay with you," Zelda said as they were walking across Hyrule Field.

"Like I said, there's always a place for you at my house, although there's a thing or two I have to take care of first," Link replied, placing his hand on the low brick wall running across the field and catapulting over the wall.

"A thing or two? Like what?" Zelda asked, sliding over the wall.

"Well, unless you plan to share a bed with me, I gotta find you a place to sleep," Link replied, a slight smirk on his face.

"Oh grow up Link!" Zelda remarked, laughing slightly.

"And besides that, Sarah's gonna camp out too, so she's picking up groceries for the three of us."

"Isn't it supposed to rain later?"

"How would I know? I don't have a TV anymore," Link remarked in mock sadness.

"The sky, Link. The sky." And Zelda had a point. The sky was darkening, ominous clouds rolling in above them.

"Let's hurry home," Zelda said. Link nodded in agreement and picked up the pace toward Kakariko.

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A/N: I know, a short chapter, but this merely serves as a filler chapter to Chapter Nineteen's events and the plot for Chapter Twenty-one. Either way, it's still something that you can read. Hopefully, you'll forgive me and click the Next Chapter button. Onward! 


	19. Rainy Days

A/N: This is my current favorite chapter, so please enjoy and forgive mistakes!**

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**Chapter Nineteen - Rainy Days**

Link tossed his hat onto the counter and flopped onto the couch. "Home sweet home, eh Zelda? It's not much, but it'll do."

"It does just fine. Besides, it'll be like a campout," she responded cheerfully.

"You got a point there," Sarah replied, dropping a small bag on the table. "I'm gonna go out to the town and pick up some stuff for breakfast."

"You sure? It looks like a storm's brewing," Zelda warned.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine. I doubt I'll get rained out," Sarah replied as she left.

-

"Zelda, stop pacing and sit down. Sarah's fine, and you're making me antsy."

Zelda nodded and sat down next to him. "You think so?"

"I'm sure of it," Link replied, trying to reassure himself as much as he was Zelda.

"What would I do without you, Link?" she asked.

"Probably start pacing again," he replied, trying not to laugh.

She did laugh. "I was being rhetorical."

"I know. Luckily, you'll never have to know, because I don't plan on leaving," Link said, putting his arm around her shoulder.

They looked out as the sky darkened. Zelda noticed that Link, not usually the romantic type, still had his arm around her shoulder. She was surprised, yes, but not disappointed. Tired, she took advantage of the situation and curled up on the couch against Link, laying her head on his shoulder.

Link adjusted himself to accommodate her, wrapping his arm around her. He leaned back against the couch, making them both comfortable.

"Link, did you ever think we would end up here?"

"A few times, but I could fly and there wasn't as much rain."

"That's not what I-"

"I know, Zellie, I was just joking. And no, had someone told me a year ago that we'd be here like this, I would have laughed. But now," he said, "it just feels, well, right."

She nodded and stared out the window, watching as the rain that had started so suddenly continued to pour down. Straining, she could barely see the outline of the castle. Just as the rain drumming on the roof became almost rhythmical and soothing, there was a flash of lightning and the ever-present thunder.

"Link?" Zelda said, her quiet voice all but drowned out by the continuing thunder.

Link felt Zelda's body tense every time the thunder crashed. He wrapped his arms protectively around her. "Don't worry," he whispered as another thunderclap sent her shaking. "I've got you."

-

Link awoke quickly to a loud banging sound, as if someone had dropped a bag of metal on the ground. He blinked a few times to clear the blur that always seems to develop during the night from his eyes with no success, and as he did so, a weight shifted off of him, taking away the warmth. Mumbling, he reached out to pull the covers back on him, but instead of finding his thick, fleecy covers, he instead grabbed onto something that was remarkably soft and smooth. He moved, and the warmth returned with a thump upon him.

"Good morning to you too," Zelda said, sitting up.

Link opened his eyes. "Zellie? Wh…what're you…wait…what'm I…where…" he mumbled as he sat up and looked around for a second. "Wait…we're…you…did I…did we…" he grumbled in confusion before finally flopping back on the couch. "Too much thinking," he groaned as last night's memories flooded back.

"Sounds like you two had an exciting night."

"Sarah?"

"That's my name! Just got back from the castle. Of course, I walk in and see you two curled up together on the couch covered up with _my_ blanket no less. To top it all off, you don't even remember what happened." She stopped, then let off a loud squeal as she rushed to Zelda. "Finally!"

Link stood up quickly. "I'm, uh, gonna go, um, anywhere but here!" he said as he dashed out of the house.

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A/N: See? 


	20. Horses, Foundations, and Oatmeal

**A/N: Voilá! Chapters Twenty and Twenty-one! I hope you enjoy them, even if they don't come near to what I thought was a very good Nineteen.

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Chapter Twenty – Horses, Foundations, and Oatmeal

Link leaned back against the stable, Epona standing next to him, chowing down on brown sugar oatmeal, a special concoction from the cursed world.

"Then you heat it up. Add the brown sugar and there you go, a ready-to-eat meal for humans _and_ horses!" Link finished.

"Still, humans eating oats?" the girl beside him asked.

"Oatmeal is an amazing food. You can add everything from sugar to strawberries for flavor. I think Sarah even knows a recipe for oatmeal cream pies."

"Sarah?"

"Saria, I meant. Gotta get used to that."

"But will the horses eat this flavored oatmeal?"

"Malon, look at Epona. She's ate almost all of it."

"Good thing, too. She's not been eating much lately."

"Why not?"

"Well, she was eating just fine before the curse, but after the curse, she'd just eat enough to stay alive and no more."

"She seems to beeating pretty goodnow."

"I know, but since no one knows what happened during the curse, it worries me."

Link, however, knew exactly what happened during the cursed years, or at least could take a good guess. It also seemed that Epona remembered it too. He stood up and walked over to her, taking off the saddle and bridle that Malon had placed on her earlier. Placing it on the stand where Malon had taken it from, he turned.

"Well, well, well, lookie who we have here. The Hero of Time decided to pay our humble abode a visit," a burly man said as he exited the stables.

"Ah, Talon. Before I forget, here." Link tossed him a bag.

"And this is for?"

"Anything and everything Epona needs."

"Aw, Link, you know good and well you don't owe us nothin' for taking care of her. Besides, you're the only one who can ride her, besides Malon, o' course."

"Still, she takes up room and eats, yes?"

"Well, yeah, but-"

"Talon, are you planning on giving the Rupees back?"

"Um, well, if you insist, I can hold on to 'em for ya."

"That's settled now." Link walked back over to Epona. "You be good now, okay?"

Link walked to the gate, but Malon stood up.

"Sure ya don't wanna take her for a gallop?"

"No thanks. I have some business I have to attend to first. Definitely later, though," Link replied. Nodding his farewell, he decided that he would risk going back to the house. Yeah...

-

Link had barely made it through the door before being slammed into a squealing Sarah.

"I knew it! I knew it would happen someday!"

"Knew what would happen?" Link asked, regretting his decision to not ride Epona.

"You and Zelda! You two are together now!"

Link just stood there. Of course, he was happy that Sarah was happy for them, but she could have at least let him in the door. And for that matter, Link wasn't sure of Zelda's reaction to all this.

Then Zelda walked into the room. Link walked over to her, momentarily forgetting about Sarah. He knew that, no matter what Sarah might think, they weren't truly together. However, the groundwork had been laid, and there was nothing left than to fill in the cracks. He had a good feeling about the next few days… Yeah, a good feeling...


	21. Party!

A/N: Alrighty, now we kick things into high gear when one of our crew in this delightful story decides to go and get a year older. when a Princess gains a year, what else is there to do but:

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-One – Party!**

It had been a few days since Zelda had come to stay with him. Sarah came and went now and again, as she was needed in the Kokiri Forest. Zelda was doing all right, but it was obvious that she was homesick.

"You know, if you miss the castle this much, maybe it would be better for you if you go back," Link said as he sat down at the table.

"It's a standoff between me and my father. Besides, if I didn't know any better, I'd say it sounded as if you were trying to get rid of me," Zelda said, smiling.

"That's not what I'm saying at all! I love having you over, I just don't like seeing you sad. I can't provide everything your father can, and I never will be able to."

Zelda nodded, understanding. "Maybe you've got a point. That's what I should do. I need to talk to my father as it is. It's getting close to my birthday, and as the princess, a royal party is in order."

"I assume that I can come?" Link asked, grinning.

"I expect you to be there," she replied in a matter-of-fact voice.

"Well then, the question remains. What in the world does one get a princess for her birthday?" Link asked her, hoping that shed give him a straightforward answer.

"You don't have to get me anything, Link," Zelda replied.

_Urg. Just the kind of answer one would expect._

"I've got to run to the castle anyway, so if you'd like, I can come with you," Link offered.

Zelda nodded. "The support is appreciated."

"Very well. If we leave after breakfast, we can reach the castle by midday. I figure that I can pick up a few things in the town and we can roll into the castle around four or five. Sound okay?"

Zelda nodded and continued eating.

-

Less than five minutes into the town, Zelda was already excited. Rarely did she get to come down here, and it was a treat when she did. "Look at this!" she exclaimed, rushing to a store window. She pointed to something on a counter as Link walked over. Not surprised, he smiled as he pulled out a small bag. He poured out a handful of orange and purple Rupees and handed the bag to Zelda.

"Meet me back here in an hour. It's not much, but maybe you can get something."

Zelda smiled and walked into the store. Once Link was out of sight, she quickly counted the Rupees and was shocked. There were about four thousand Rupees in it! How Link had gotten this much without her noticing was astounding. It was also astounding how he fit so many Rupees in such a small bag. So, she did what any person would do with almost four thousand Rupees - go on a shopping spree!

Link smiled as he saw Zelda start grabbing things left and right. He then turned andwalked into a small store down an unnoticedalley. The store, darkened by age, didn't seem to even be owned, let aloneopen. The lights flickered on, however, as he closed the door behind him.

-

An hour later, Link and Zelda, both laden with bags, strolled up the castle pathway. Link stopped once they got to the door.

"By the way, you remember how you were gonna organize a party?"

"Yeah..."

"I think it's too late," he replied as he flung open the door, revealing tons of people feasting, dancing, and generally having fun. Zelda rushed forward into the room, followed by Link. He handed his bags to Sarah, who hurried them into the kitchen.

"How did you organize all this?" Zelda asked, astounded by Link's resourcefulness once again.

"Do you really think the King would just let you leave the castle? Especially right after you almost got kidnapped? It was only because I'm the Hero of Time that he even agreed. Besides, what's the fun of a surprise party if you find out?" Link replied.

"Well then, lets go have fun!" she said, excited, as she and Link filtered through the crowd.

-

"Hey, Sarah, have you seen Link?" Zelda asked, plopping down at one of the tables that had been set up around the ballroom.

"I saw him a while ago heading toward the place overlooking the south courtyard. He looked kinda sad. Something happen?" Sarah responded as she sat down across from Zelda.

"I'm not sure. Earlier, we were walking around when my father kidnapped me for what he called 'royal duties.' Link seemed all right, though. Not saddened at all, actually. He was quite happy to escape my fate," she said, laughung slightly.

"Hmm. Wonder what happened."

"I think that I shall go and find out!" Zelda announced, standing up. She walked over to a pair of open large glass doors. Stepping through them, she made her way to a small area set aside from the castle.

The moon's rays fell upon a person who was sitting on the railing above the courtyard. As Zelda approached, the figure continued to look down at the courtyard.

"Hey, Link," Zelda said quietly. She sat down next to him as he turned to look at her.

"Hey, Zellie," Link said, then turned back to the courtyard.

"Something on your mind? You're not always this quiet."

"Nothing for you to worry about."

"You know that every time you say that, I worry."

Link turned to face Zelda. "Have you ever felt like there was something you wanted to do, but in order to get it done, you had to overcome some Everest-like obstacle?"

"I'm a princess. Listening to my father's strict demands is an Everest in itself."

"Yeah, but it's not the same. I, well, no, you wouldn't understand..." Link let his sentence trail into the night.

"Try me," she replied, taking his hand in hers. She looked directly at him, straight into his now sapphire-blue eyes, which seemed to shift shades in the moonlight. _They seem so full of sadness... _she thought.

"I, um, I-" he tried to say, but merely dropped his head, to look at the railing they were perched on.

Zelda stood and nodded. She silently walked towards the door, but stopped halfway. A melody was echoing all around her. It was unknown to her, and yet it seemed so familiar. She pulled out the treasure of the Hyrule family, the Ocarina of Time. She brought the instrument to her mouth, and seemingly breathed the spark of life into it. Not one hundred percent sure what notes she was playing, she ran her fingers across the holes as she felt necessary. Within moments, her song matched the other, and the two intertwined, rising high into the night sky. The sounds from the music temporarily drowned out the music in the ballroom, not to mention in the rest of the castle. The haunting melody reminded Zelda of her childhood as a princess, not as the cursed child. It reminded her of late nights, when she was a baby and could not sleep. A third instrument joined the song in her mind as she remembered being rocked to sleep.

The music carried on for a few more moments, then faded into the night that seemed to absorb every note to make it last longer. Zelda turned to look at Link. For a split second, their eyes locked, then he replaced the Fairy Ocarina in his pack. Zelda smiled and walked back inside to the noise that she could care less for, Link by her side, their hands latched to each other in an unbreakable bond.

* * *

A/N: In the infamous words of Cheryl: Awwww! I hope you enjoyed the little romanticey moment I plugged in. I also hope to have a lot more of them, as well as several embarrasing situations! ;-)

(Not revealing anything... Not revealing anything... Not revealing anything... Not revealing anything...)


	22. The Aftermath

A/N: Hello, my adoring fans! (coughyeahrightcough) This chapter's more just a filler chapter that pushes events along to the next chapter. However, there will be few fillers soon enough, so be prepared for several rather meaty chapters.**

* * *

**

**Chapter Twenty-two - The Aftermath**

"I thought people would be neater at the castle," Link said, surveying the damage that was the ballroom.

"Oh really? I figured they'd be messier due to the fact that they don't have to clean up," Sarah replied, picking up plates and other associated trash.

"You both are right. They're messier because they don't have to clean up, but they know this is the Castle of Hyrule, so it balances out." Zelda collapsed the tables Sarah had just finished cleaning off.

"The first thing on my agenda now is to re-invent the vacuum cleaner," Link joked as he swept up the debris on the floor.

"Good luck with that, seeing as how you have no idea how one works," Sarah retorted.

"Yes I do! You push the button and the hose makes the dust vanish!"

Zelda turned to him. "You are joking, right? I mean, you do know that there's more to it, yes?"

"Of course. There's the power cord too!" he stated with a straight face, which didn't last long. The three of them started laughing, then one by one started cleaning up once more.

"You know, you'd get more work done if you'd joke less," a voice said as the door opened. Ruo strode in, her long blue dress seemingly floating behind her.

"Yeah, well, we'd get even more work done if you'd help," Sarah replied, tossing a bag at her.

"Oh, and after you get done, tell me how you do that floating trick with the back of your dress," Zelda added.

Ruo laughed. "It's simple! Grow a tail." She lifted the back up enough to reveal a long, blue, mermaid-like tail.

"Well, that's a little out of the question. Thanks anyway."

"Are you all gonna stand here or help clean?"

Sarah stood there for a moment, as if in deep thought. "Hmm... That's a good question. Should we help the poor little elf-boy, or go do anything else we may want to do?"

"Hey! I'm not an elf!"

Zelda grabbed Link's ears and rubbed the pointy tips that had developed recently. Link jerked away and held his ears protectively.

"My ears, not yours. Besides, looks as if I'm not the only one with a pointy-eared head."

Sarah turned to Zelda and looked at her closely. "He's right! Your ears are pointy too!"

Ruo coughed innocently, but Link could've sworn he had heard the word 'elf-girl' somewhere in there.

"Watch it, fish-girl," Zelda growled.

"Like you have room to talk, elf-girl!" Ruo fired back.

"Will you two stop fighting?" Sarah asked.

"Shush, you midget sprite," Ruo remarked.

"At least I don't have a tail!"

"Yeah, well, at least I don't glow under a blacklight."

"Luckily, I still have my hair to glow!"

Ruo, who had just finished her 'transformation' into a Zora, had been mortally upset about the fact that Zora had no hair. Link thought that Sarah had hit below the belt there for a moment, but Ruo merely smiled.

"Luckily, I'm not gonna say what I could say," she merely said with a glance toward Link.

Sarah froze up for a half a second, then shrugged. Link had no idea what the comment truly meant however, so he continued picking up the junk lying about.

"Hey, I have an idea."

"Do tell, Zelda."

"How about I talk to my father and get him to let you stay for a day or two?"

"I'd love to, but the Domain calls, and my father wont let me ignore it," Ruo responded.

"What's he gonna do, send troops to the doorstep and haul you back?"

"I wouldn't test him. He spoils me bad. Luckily, very few of my pre-curse memories have come back."

Link nodded and threw a large trash bag at Zelda. Right before coming in contact with her head, it vanished in a flash of blue light. She turned to Link. "Interesting, isn't it? The Protection of the Goddesses, as Impa put it."

Link growled and turned to the tables, continuing to clean.

-

Sarah headed toward her room to dump her stuff off. The King had given his agreements, and Link and Zelda had wandered off somewhere. With Ruo gone, she was gonna go hang out in her room for a while. Passing one of the abandoned rooms that were scattered everywhere, she was surprised to hear Link and Zelda's voices coming from inside. Sarah leaned against the door to hear better.

"Link, you know I get nervous about this."

"Don't be. You've got nothing to worry about."

"But what if-"

"No what-if. You're not going to hurt anyone, so long as you're careful. Come here."

"Hey! Be careful with that! That's not a toy, you know."

"Give me your hand."

"Why?"

"Just give me your hand."

"Ok..."

"Feel how smooth it is? That's the sign of a master. Only ones who are good at their arts can prevent marks and dents. Besides, who'd teach you besides me?"

"Well, I figured that I'd badger one of the Knights until he gave in."

"I'm ten times as good as any Knight you can find."

"I know that, but you helping me with this makes me even more nervous. I mean, you know how I feel about us."

"I do, yes, and that is why I'm helping you with this. I would take much more care not to hurt you."

"I know you wouldn't hurt me, Link."

"And I won't, although I might cause a few bruises. You know me and you know how I am when I get into it."

"Yes, which is why I hadn't asked sooner. Now, am I done feeling the smoothness?"

"Oh, sorry! Alright, ready?"

"As ready as I can be."

"Alright then! Let's do it!"

At that particular moment, Sarah flung open the door. "Hold on a second!"

Link froze, his left hand in midair, his right clutching his usual sword. Zelda, too, also stopped, a slender blade clutched in her hand as well.

"Sarah! You can't say a word of this to anyone!" Zelda blurted.

"You...I...thought...but not...wait, swords, Zelda?"

"I've always wanted to be able to defend myself with a weapon, and I asked Link to teach me swordplay."

Sarah sighed. "Ok."

Link looked back to Zelda. "Well, I guess we'll continue later. Remember, a sword is an extension of your arm, and is used as such. It is not a stick, it is not a fork, it is a delicate, balanced killing machine, and should be treated as such. Besides, if in doubt, just stick 'em with the pointy end."

Zelda laughed. "I'll be sure to remember that. I guess I'll go wander the castle for a while. See you two at lunch."

Sarah nodded as she left. Before leaving herself, she turned to Link. "Well, sorry to interrupt your lesson."

Link nodded and Sarah noticed that he seemed nervous, wary even. "Don't worry about it. I'll see you later," he said as he bolted out the door.

"Peculiar," Sarah remarked before leaving toward her room.

-

Several hours later, Link was hanging out in the stair junction, that part where there are tons of stairs leading everywhere. "What's upsetting you, Zelda?" he asked as she stormed down a set of stairs.

"Those stuck-up so-called Knights!" she shouted.

"Can I be filled in?" Link responded.

"I was down at the training area, looking at the flowers-"

"Flowers, sure. Only if by flower you mean giant, spiky, steel ball-on-a-chain formerly known as the flail."

"Alright, alright, I was admiring the craftsmanship-"

"Craftsmanship, sure. Only if by craftsmanship you mean imagining riding around swing it wildly around your head."

"I get the point! Either way, I was down at the training field when a Knight did a move with a sword I'd never seen before. I asked him how he did it, and he first refused to teach me. When he learned that I was the princess, he told me he'd see if my father'd let me. He only gave in to get me to go away and the only reason he was even talking to me was because I'm the princess, can you believe them? Rude little horse-riding brats!"

Link nodded. "Oh well. Only a few things you can do, but right now, let's just talk about something happier," he replied, taking her hand in his and strolling out into the courtyard.

"You know, I'd forgotten how peaceful the courtyard is," Zelda said, gazing around at the many plants.

"I know. The statues are impressive too." Link walked up to the largest one, an angel with wings spread, as if ready to fly, its head upturned to the heavens. "The sculptor must have been the top of his skill. Look at the detail." Link brushed away some vines growing at the bottom. Wary of the spiderweb of cracks here and there, he wiped some of the dust off.

"An angel, fallen from the grace of the Goddesses, frozen in concrete. Her face reflects deep sadness, as if she was heartbroken. Do you know who the model for this was?"

"Nope," Link answered.

"It was made to look like my great-grandmother. Before she became Queen, she was just like any carefree little girl in Hyrule, but she was forced into marrying the prince of Hyrule. She never had a choice. There were also rumors of a young boy that she had fallen in love with that vanished the day she was wed. She was also the first Queen never to have any boys, thus her daughter became the first blood Queen of Hyrule."

"I'm sure that caused a commotion."

"Of course. It almost tore the country apart." Zelda sighed, then looked up at the statue. "It's funny, you know."

"What is?"

"Even after her husband died, she refused to marry again. After he died, she gave up the crown to her daughter and became an advisor. Never once did she look for a new husband, nor did she let a suitor into the castle for the rest of her days. She was the nicest person anyone could have met, too."

"A true angel, then. It seems, though, that she still had a bit of grace, though."

"Why do you say that?" Zelda asked.

"Look at her great-granddaughter," he replied, smiling.

She smiled. "The mother of the first Queen of the blood. Honored above all, she was a great woman." Zelda walked from the statue as the sun's rays fell on its wings, leaving two silhouetted wings trailing after her.

"So, who's this?" Link asked, pointing to another statue, this one of a woman with armor on, a sword in her hand.

"That's my grandmother, the Queen of Fire. When she ascended to the throne, her cousin, Richard, gathered an army and proclaimed the throne his, due to the fact that he was the last male of the Hyrule family. She gathered up her own army, donned her own armor, and met Richard face-to-face on Hyrule Field. The greatest war in history happened soon after, the Civil War of Hyrule. The country was almost split in two, but she managed to defeat Richard and reclaim his lands, restoring the land."

"Why was she called the Queen of Fire?"

"She was the first woman ever to lead a charge in battle. That, and she was the best archer that the lands had seen. She invented the flaming arrow. The flaming arrow that didn't involve magic, that is."

Link bent down and dusted off the plaque below the statue. "Zelda Hyrule, The Queen of Fire."

"My namesake. She eventually married a man from another country. He refused to become King. They had one child, which they named Daphnes."

"And a few decades of rulership led to the birth of you, I presume?"

"Yep."

Zelda and Link walked around the area, Link pointing to this or that, and Zelda explaining them. They went through several more statues and tapestries before Link nodded.

"Well, it's been fun walking through history with you, but I have a sudden urge for something to eat. Unless you would like to join me, I'm off to the kitchens."

"If thou dost not mind the burden of my company, I shall join thee."

"Then I guess that means off to the kitchens!"

* * *

A/N: Half the chapter is pointless background stuff, and the other half is pointless hilarity (the best kind, eh?). Next chapter, however, is a bittersweet chapter, and, as much as it will pain me to post it, there's only a few errors I gotta fix and it's ready. I must trudge on! 


	23. Dinner

A/N: Sorry it took me so long to post. You'll see why.

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-Three: Dinner at the Castle**

Zelda led Link, Sarah, and Ruo into the main banquet hall. "I can't believe he's serving us here," Zelda said in disbelief.

"What's wrong with in here?" Ruo quizzed, thoroughly enjoying the castle.

"Nothing's wrong, it's just that I didn't expect him to pull out all the stops for us," Zelda responded.

Suddenly, at the other side of the room, the double doors were thrown open and a man emerged. "Zelda! It is good to see you again! Let me guess, Princess Ruto and Saria, yes?"

"Yes, sir, and it is an honor to finally meet the great King of Hyrule," Sarah chimed as if she had rehearsed the response.

"A fine young woman, I see. And from what I remember, the Zora princess is also trained in the ways of conversation." Ruo nodded in response.

"Just like I remember. I assume, then, this fine young gentleman is Link?"

"Correct as always, your Highness."

"Well then, I do appreciate you humoring this aged king, for his memory slips from time to time. And if my memory still serves me well, I believe it is eating time. I've had the cook prepare a special meal, custom-fit to each of us."

Link's eyes lit up. "And when will it be ready?"

As if on cue, the double doors flew open again, and carts rolled through them, piled with food. The King sat down, and the others followed suit. As each tray was set in fromt of them, the five began to eat, albeit at different speeds. Sarah and Ruo, half wary, half starving, started by eating small bites, but soon picked up speed. Zelda, refined as she was, ate her meal neatly and at a steady speed. Link, however, dove right into his meal and didn't surface until the food was gone.

The dinner seemed to speed by, and soon enough, the five of them were finished. Zelda's father looked toward Link.

"So, Hero of Time, how have you been?"

"I have been doing well, considering."

"Considering?"

"The curse, your Highness."

"Ah. I do take it, then, that the effects are fully gone?"

"More or less. There are a few holes in my past where my memory hasn't finished coming back, but seeing as how I needed only minor transformations, second to Zelda of course, I have recovered quickly."

The King nodded and proceeded to ask several questions of Link. Soon, he also included Sarah and Ruo in the questioning. After many questions, the dinner was ended and they retired to their rooms.

- Later that night -

"Sarah?" Link called out. He sat upon his bed and turned to look over to Sarah's bed.

"Yeah, Link?" she responded, turning to look back at him.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course."

"What is your view of love?"

"Love?" Sarah asked, surprised.

"Yeah. What's your take on it?"

"Love is, simply put, what holds people together," she replied, ignoring several thoughts that had sprung unbidden to her mind.

"And how do you know if you love someone?" Link asked, carefully wording his question.

"A few questions will answer yours. First, are you comfortable around her?"

Link nodded.

"And you appreciate her company?"

He nodded once more.

"Do you ever look at her and want to help her, to shelter her from her fears, to catch her when she stumbles, to hold her when she needs it, to be the one she comes to when she's hurt?" Sarah asked, sighing as sheasked it.

Link nodded once again.

"Then, yes, you're in love with that person," Sarah replied, rolling over to face the wall, a single unexplained tear rolling across her cheek.

-

Zelda walked into her room and strode to the middle, near her bed. She was immensely grateful toward her father, especially after tonight, but she had to wonder how he would react when he learned that she was in love with Link. Yes, that was it. Love. She had never imagined using that word to describe someone that she wasn't related to, least of all Link. Yet, what other word would work? She had an almost constant desire to be by his side and it was nerve-wracking when he wasn't close.

Her gaze was slowly drawn toward the glass doors leading out to the balcony. Although it was the most lavishly decorated room in the castle, she despised this room and, more importantly, that balcony. For a while now, she had been having a recurring nightmare concerning this room and that balcony, and what scared her was the immense pain that came in the dream.

And yet, she was oddly peaceful. Zelda slowly walked out onto the chilly balcony. The moon's light shone upon her still figure as she looked upwards toward the pale disc in the sky. Zelda thought for a moment as she remembered a saying of Link's.

'Never forget, the moon is always there, whether we can see it or not. It's our perception that changes. And with so many people looking up to it at night, it's not surprising.' Zelda smiled.

Shewalked inside into the warmth. Closing the balcony doors, she started getting ready to go to sleep. She was halfway to her dresser when an explosion of pain shot through her body. Gasping, she fell to her knees. She felt the excruciating pain tear through her body, causing her to shout in agony. However, no sound came. She could only lay there, collapsed on the floor, as the pain expanded through her body. She could only curl up, a single word stuck in her throat.

* * *

A/N: See why I didn't want to post it? Please don't stop reading... I'll have the next chapter up soon, I promise. 


	24. Poison

**Chapter Twenty-Four - Poison**

Link woke to Sarah shaking him in an attempt to wake him.

"I'm awake, I'm awake."

"No you're not! Get up now!"

"What's the rush, my little forest friend?"

"It's Zelda! Something's wrong with her!"

Link was out of bed and wide awake in record time. "What's wrong?"

"The doctor thinks she was poisoned."

Link grabbed his sword and backpack. "Take me to her."

"The doctor said that noone's allowed in. She's unstable."

"He'll let me in."

-

"Alright Doc, fill me in."

"And who are you?" the doctor asked.

"I'm Link, the Hero of Time. Now, what's wrong with the princess?"

"I'm sorry, mister Link," he said, making sure he name was right. "I'm new here, so if your title's supposed to carry weight here, I wouldn't know."

"Let's see how much weight it carries when it's measured by the two and a half foot of steel that's about to be planted in your skull!"

"Link!" Sarah exclaimed, shocked that Link would threaten a doctor.

"Sorry, Sarah. It's just that it's Zelda, and, well..."

"I understand." Sarah walked to the doctor. "Listen, doc. I have a good feeling that both the princess and the King would be upset if Link here wasn't allowed in. Now, an entire Royal Family mad at you doesn't sound too good, now does it?"

The doctor gulped and opened the door for Link.

"Zelda?" Link questioned.

"I'm over here, Link."

Link walked over to the princess, who was lying down on her bed, obviously not feeling well. "How ya doing?"

"He didn't tell you, did he?"

"Tell me what?"

"I've been poisoned, and not by the nice kind."

"Zelda, I swear to you, I will find out who's responsible for this."

"It was Ganon."

"Then Ill find him and get the antidote."

"Link, you must understand. There is no cure."

"There has to be!"

"Link, if there was a cure, don't you think I'd be after it?"

"I won't lose you!" he shouted.

"Link..."

"No! There has to be a cure! I won't let this happen!" Link shouted and stormed out.

"What happened in there?" Sarah asked.

"Tell me where I can find Ganon."

"You're not going to do anything reckless, are you?"

"Where is Ganon?"

"Once you leave the castle area, go to the west. Soon enough, you'll reach the desert."

Link nodded and walked down the steps.

-

_There it is, the desert. Ganon's somewhere in there. I will find him._

Link slid down the hill and jumped up onto the sand. He crossed the bridge and entered the Gerudo Fortress.

-

"You! Stop!" a Gerudo shouted as she scrambled after Link.

"Just try to catch me!" he shouted as he scrambled up a wall. The Gerudo grabbed his leg and jerked him down.

"There. Now, what are you doing here?"

"I told you, I'm looking for Ganon."

"You think you deserve to meet with the King?"

"I don't plan on meeting him. I plan on wringing his fat neck!"

"Why you little pipsqueak!" the Gerudo exclaimed. She lunged after Link, who dodged.

"Come on, you can do better than that!" Link shouted as he jumped up on a low roof from a crate.

"Come down here and say that!"

"Take me to Ganon and Ill come down!"

"You pesky kid. I'd never take you to Ganon."

"You don't have to."

The Gerudo froze. She slowly turned and came face to face, more or less, with Ganon.

"M-my King!"

"Finally! Ganon, just in time." Link dropped down to the ground.

"What brings you here, Hero of Time?" Ganon growled sarcastically.

"You know good and well what brings me here!"

"Oh? Is that so?"

"I came for the antidote!"

"Antidote? To what?"

"To the poison!"

"And what poison would that be?"

"You sure play dumb pretty well. I'm talking about the one Zelda's sick with!"

Oh, _that_ poison! Didn't they tell you? There's no cure."

"There has to be!"

"Do you think Id risk you coming here and getting the cure?"

"If you wont give it to me, then Ill beat it out of you:" Link shouted, drawing his sword.

"This'll be interesting." Ganon drew his blade as well.

Link charged toward Ganon, but before he could get close enough, Ganon smashed him in the side with the flat of his sword, sending him sprawling. Link stood up and charged again. This time, he got close enough to hit Ganon a few times, but the Gerudo shrugged as if nothing had happened.

"You might want to brush up on your swordfighting skill."

Link whirled around and brought his sword spinning around. It smashed into Ganon, knocking him off balance. Link lunged at him. Colliding, they both fell to the floor. Link scrambled up and placed his sword at Ganon's throat.

"The antidote!"

The Gerudos around them started to close in around them, but Ganon held up his hand. "Back. I told you, there is no antidote."

"Liar! Tell me where to get the cure, or Ill, Ill-"

"You'll do what, kill me? You don't have what it takes."

"I don't want to, but if you wont tell me-"

"Get it through that thick skull of yours! There is no cure! I'm not stupid enough to use a poison that you could cure." Ganon flipped over and knocked Link down. Ganon stood up and picked Link up around his neck. "There is no cure. Now scram, you little twerp!" he shouted, tossing Link out into the desert.

Link stood up. He started walking toward Ganon, but realized that he had a point. Why would he leave things up to chance? Ganon would want things to go perfectly, and that would only lead to one conclusion. Link spun around and started running to the castle.

-

"Link! You're back! You're okay!" Sarah exclaimed as Link threw open the castle doors.

"How's Zelda?"

"Bad. The doctor said she needs her rest, so I'm about to go get something to eat."

Link nodded. He followed Sarah to the kitchen and started digging around for something. Sarah turned on the oven and tossed a pizza in.

"That do ya?"

"For now."

-

Link and Sarah were lounging in the dining hall, finishing off the pizza.

"So, how long?" Link asked.

"The doctor said that Zelda has maybe a week. Her father, however, has a lot less."

"The King?"

"Yeah. He was poisoned as well. It seems Ganon planned to take out the entire Royal family in one blow."

"Why didn't it affect us?"

"We didn't eat the contaminated food, I guess."

"Talk about good luck. I'm gonna go see Zelda."

"The doctor said that she needs rest."

"For what? He also said that she's gonna die in a week, and I intend on spending every bit of it with her," Link remarked as he walked up the stairs.

-

"Link, it's good to see you."

"And you too." Link walked over to her bed. Zelda was leaned up against the headboard, and she wasn't looking well at all. Her face, once a beautiful mixture of colors, was now shadowed and grim. She seemed happy enough, but Link knew her well enough that it was only a front she was putting on.

"I tried."

"I know you did, and it was a nice thought, but there is no cure, and there never was."

"I know, but it's not fair! I can't lose you to some rare poison!"

"Link, I know how you feel. My father is also poisoned, and far worse than I am. The doctor will be surprised if he lives through the night."

"I'm sorry. If there was anything I could do, I'd do it in a heartbeat."

"I know you would, but there's nothing we can do."

"It's so hard to accept, though."

"I know. Can you do me a favor?"

"Just name it."

"Will you just, sit here for a while? You don't have to do anything, just sit here beside me for a while."

Link nodded and walked over. He sat down on the bed next to Zelda, and she leaned on him, her head resting on his shoulder.

"Thanks."

"No problem." _I'd do anything for you._


	25. Funeral

A/N: I just wanna say that I apologize for this chapter, one for it being so short. I couldn't bring myself to write anymore. You'll see what I mean. Second, for just that. Read on, if you want... I promise I'll haveTwenty-Six up real soon.**

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**Chapter Twenty-Five - Funeral**

Link awoke to find himself propped up against the headboard of Zelda's bed, no Zelda to be found. He instantly jumped up and dashed out of the room. Looking around, Link heard a muffled voice crying. He ran to the room and quietly opened the door. Inside was Zelda, knelt on the ground next to her father. Link walked over to her and bent down to help her up. He wiped some tears away from Zelda's already tearstreaked face.

"Oh, Link," she managed to choke out before breaking into tears again. Link wrapped his arms around her, and she placed her head upon his shoulder.

"Everything's gonna be okay. Your father is with the Goddesses now, removed from the pain."

"I know, but he's gone. It was too soon. He was too young."

"Be strong, Zelda. With the King gone, you are now the Queen of Hyrule."

"Me, a queen? Who would've expected that?"

"You've always been royalty to me," Link whispered.

Zelda smiled. "Thanks."

Link nodded. "Now, there's a pressing matter we need to attend to."

-

"Today we say farewell to our beloved king, one of the greatest men that has ever tread across Hyrulean soil. Although his soul is gone to the Gods and his body entombed, the great King of Hyrule will remain forever in our hearts. Today, we mark the end of the Hyrulean Age of Kings."

The priest lit a torch and placed it on a small boat that he pushed into the water. The boat sliced through the waters of Lake Hylia, finally vanishing through the small outlet that led to the ocean.

Zelda stood silent next to Link as the torches fading light vanished. She turned to him, and he nodded. The two of them walked away from the shore to Epona. Link helped Zelda up, then led Epona away towards the castle in the distance.

"Thanks for coming with me."

You know I would have been there anyway."

"I know, but it wouldn't be the same."

Link nodded. "Now, what was it you needed to talk to me about?"

"As you know, in a week, there will no longer be a Royal Family to claim the throne. Link, I want you to take the throne when I die."

"What?" Link asked, shocked.

"You heard me. I am not going to live much longer, that fact I have accepted. I plan to fight this until the end, but there's no point in ignoring the inevitable. I want you to take the throne."

"But why me? There has to be someone better."

"You have a partially legitimate claim to the throne. You are the Hero of Time, personal guard to the Royal Family. The only person who could challenge you would be Impa, and I'm sure shed support your claim."

"Zelda, I don't know how to run a kingdom."

"Impa will help you. So will Saria and Ruto. The Goron leader, Darunia, will probably help if you ask him."

Link nodded. "I will think about it."

Zelda nodded and turned to look forward toward the castle, Link walking beside Epona, leading the way.

-

"She's already planning what happens to the kingdom? That's Zelda for you."

"Yeah, that's one of the nice things about her," Link said, half there and half in 'la-la land,' as Zelda always put it.

Sarah smiled. "Its gonna feel weird without her." Link could only nod. He just sat there.

_Zelda, why do I have to lose you? Why...?_

"Link?"

Link snapped back to reality. "Yeah?"

"I take it you didn't hear that noise, then."

"What noise?" he asked.

As if on cue, there was a loud scream, as if someone was in immense pain. At the exact time, a wave of pain coursed through Link's left hand, as if it was on fire. Ignoring the throbbing pain, Link jumped up and raced to Zelda's room.

He slammed the doors open only to find Zelda curled up on the floor holding her head. Link rushed over to her.

"What happened?"

"The pain... My head, it hurts... So much... to remember..." she gasped out between obvious pain spasms which sent her reeling.

"Sarah, get, um, anyone!" he shouted, sending her running. Link wrapped his arms around Zelda, trying to comfort her as best he could.

"Everything will be okay."

"Link, I cant take it..." she said, her voice almost too quiet to hear.

"You have to. Fight it."

"I... can't..."

"You have to! You can't die! Hyrule needs you! The town needs you! I need you," he finished, his voice almost as low as hers.

Zelda nodded painfully. "For... you..." Link felt Zelda's body go limp.

"No, not yet, not now. I still need you," Link said quietly before hugging Zelda's limp body. Tears streamed down the great Hero's face, leaving small glistening trails behind before they fell.

"No, not yet... Don't leave me here, alone... I can't do this without you. I love you..."


	26. The Return of Dark Link!

A/N: Well, here's the next chapter that was demanded of me. :-) I hope you enjoy.**

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**Chapter Twenty-Six - The Return of Dark Link!**

"Link!" Sarah shouted as she rushed in, followed by the doctor. Link looked up and wiped his tears away with his sleeve.

"Oh no... Are we too late?"

Link merely turned back to Zelda and stood. He carried her to her bed and gently laid her down. The doctor walked over and placed two fingers on her neck.

"We've got a pulse. Its faint, but steady. She's alive. I don't know how, but she's alive."

"Thank the Goddesses," Sarah replied. Link nodded.

"She needs her rest. She's alive, but there's something wrong with her brain. It reminds me of one case of sensory overload I had several years ago. Her brain needs to, um..."

"Reboot?" Sarah asked.

"Perfect word. No idea what it means, but I like it."

Sarah nodded and walked to the door. The doctor started to leave, but then stopped. "Is he coming?"

Sarah shook her head. "Leave him, trust me. Nothing would make him leave unless Zelda walked out first."

The doctor nodded and Sarah closed the door.

-

_Wha... Where am I?_ Zelda thought as she sat up. Looking around, she was surprised to find herself surrounded in complete darkness. She saw a figure walking toward her in the distance. She was weak from the poison, and whatever had just happened wasn't helping. She remembered telling Link that she'd fight it, and so she did. A split second later, she had felt as if someone was trying to take over her body. She had resisted as much as she could, then she blacked out. Now she was here.

"Who are you?" Zelda asked the stranger.

"Me? I go by Shiek."

"Do you know what happened?"

Shiek nodded. "The Triforce saved you."

"That's it?"

"Well, its actually a lot more complicated, but you'll remember soon enough."

Zelda nodded. "One question. You said that Shiek's what you are called, so what's your actual name?"

"My true name? My true name is Zelda." And with that, Shiek vanished.

Zelda blinked, then realized that the darkness was gone. She sat up and looked around. Her room looked the exact same, except for the lone figure hunched over in a chair, an occasional tear dropping to the carpet.  
Zelda stood and walked to Link, who looked up to her.

"Stand. Stand and dry your eyes."

Link obligingly stood. "I thought I had lost you before I could tell you..."

"Before you could tell me what?"

"Before I could tell you that I," he stopped for a second, then continued. "That I love you."

Zelda smiled. "Well, I'm glad I was around to hear that."

Link leaned in a bit, and with an almost unnoticeable nod from Zelda, kissed her. Zelda had no idea how long they stood there, but when Link pulled back, she decided it hadn't been long enough. She leaned forward and returned the kiss.

-

"Are you sure that guy will be okay?" the doctor asked Sarah.

"No. However, Link's a strong-willed individual. I'll check on him when I take him some food. I was serious when I said that he won't leave until she does."

Suddenly, Zelda and Link walked into the room. Sarah jumped up and ran to Zelda, who seemed oddly happy. "You're okay! You had us all worried! Link over there wouldn't even leave your room!"

Zelda smiled. "I know."

"You need food," Sarah declared, all but dragging Zelda to the table which the cook had taken the liberty of covering the table with food.

"Now this I like."

Zelda laughed. "Do you ever think of anything besides food?"

"There's a few other things," he replied with a wink towards Zelda, who merely smiled.

"Did I miss something?" Sarah asked.

"Yup," Link responded.

Sarah shrugged. "Always left in the dark, I am."

"You'll get over it. Now, lets eat!"

-

"Well, its official. There is no trace of the poison. You are cured."

"Good. I'd really rather not die from leftover poison."

"Yeah." Link grinned mischievously. "Besides, I'd have to come up with something else to tell you after you miraculously cured yourself."

Zelda laughed. "What, running out of confessions?"

"Well, no, I have a ton, its just the ones I wanna tell you about are dwindling."

Zelda rolled her eyes. "You're crazy, you know that?"

"I prefer the term clinically insane," he said, trying not to laugh.

"Nuts is more like it."

"Why thank you, my Queen," Link said.

"Of all people, I never expected that out of your mouth."

"Well, what do you expect? You are queen, after all."

"So unfortunate, isn't it?" a voice asked. Link and Zelda spun around, only to see Dark Link stand up on the windowsill.

"It's you!"

"Well of course it is, my dimwitted alter ego."

"Watch it. Now, what do you want?"

"I came to finish what I started." He jumped down and drew a sword from his waist. On instinct, Link unsheathed the Master Sword and charged toward Dark Link.

Zelda reached over to her dresser. In a flash, the drawer was opened and Zelda held a sword as well.

"No, Zelda, stay back! He's just as good as I am at swordfighting and it would put you at risk!" Link shouted, blocking several blows.

Zelda watched as Dark Link continued to rain blows upon Link. Putting as much strength as she could behind it, Zelda hurled the sword at Dark Link. The sword flew through Dark Link, but it distracted him enough for Link to get back to the offense.

"Heh, you know that we are evenly matched. Even our swords are equal," Dark Link said as he slashed at Link. Link brought his sword up to block and the two swords collided and slid to the hilts of the other.

"Evenly matched," Dark Link affirmed. "The only difference in our swords is the color."

"Now that's where you're wrong. My sword has been blessed by the Seven Sages. It carries the energy of the Triforce of Courage, the powers of the Goddesses. Your sword is just a shadow of mine!" Link shouted, shoving his sword forward, sending Dark Link's sword flying. Dark Link himself fell back against the ground. Link walked up to Dark Link and placed his sword at his throat.

"Yield."

"You truly are clueless. Me and you, were like two sides of a coin. Light and dark. You are no more powerful than I."

"Then how did I win?"

"You used a slight flaw. As long as I am not entirely real, you will appear stronger. Your blade, your mind, your heart will all be stronger, but remember that I am a shadow, and I will always be right behind you."

"Not if I can help it. Zelda, I suggest you look away." Link brought his sword up, ready to deliver the killing blow.

Dark Link instantly sunk into the ground, becoming a puddle of darkness. It started to move, but Link brought his sword down to stab into the puddle near the edge. There was an unnatural shriek of pain from the puddle as it all but flew to the window and slid out it.

"Link, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks for the help," he said, handing Zelda the blade she had thrown at Dark Link.

"So it was Dark Link who poisoned me."

"He's working for Ganon."

"Oh well. He's gone now."

"He'll be back, and soon."

-

Dark Link materialized near the Zora River. Cleaning and bandaging the gash Link had left him right below his arm, he started the walk to the Gerudo fortress.

"So, the legendary Master Sword is the only blade that can hurt me. If I hadn't moved, I wouldn't have come out alive. And to think I thought he didn't have it in him to kill anyone, least of all his own reflection."

-

"What happened in there?" Saria asked.

"Dark Link's back," Link replied, sheathing his sword.

"Oh great."

"I'm going after him."

"Link, don't. We don't know where he is. Besides, what if he comes back?"

"He knows better than to come back here."

"Link, please..."

"No, Zelda. I have to do this."

Zelda nodded.

"I know you probably don't understand, but this is something that I need to do."

"You're right, I don't understand. I have a good feeling that you don't either. However, I do understand that you need to do this. Here, take this with you." Zelda handed Link a small glowing stone. He pocketed it and walked out the door.

-

_Where could that shadow be?_ Link thought, walking across Hyrule Field. He stopped and watched the sun sink below the trees. Even in these days of peace, Stalchildren still rose at night. Link readied his sword, but none came. Instead, a person walked toward Link.

"Twilight, my favorite time of day. Just watching the darkness sweeping across the land, sending children running to their houses, draining all color from everything, the eventual fate of the land."

"You're a sadistic person, you know that?"

"Why thank you. I didn't know you cared."

"You do know that darkness will not win, yes?"

"Of course it will. Light gains ground, only to have it taken back the next night. Even people are dark-hearted."

"That's not true!"

"Yes it is. Think about it, what do you do when the last light goes out?"

"I fight to relight it."

"How foolish. Tell me, what is the best source of light?"

"The sun..."

"What happens when the sun goes out?"

"The sun can't just go out."

"And why not? The sun is simply a large candle, and a candle can just go out."

"The sun is a giant ball of fire at least a hundred times the size of the planet."

"So's a candle, if you made a large enough one."

"Forget it. If the sun went out, everything would die."

"And darkness would reign supreme."

"So? Who would care?"

"I would."

"You'd be dead."

I cannot be killed. I live as part of the darkness."

"Oh yeah? Let's test your new theory." Link brought his sword up and dropped into a combat stance he barely used. Dark Link drew his own sword. Within seconds, they both charged and started trying to land blows on each other.

Link brought his sword to slam into Dark Link's, sending the force of the impact shooting down both Links' arms. Link withdrew, only to lunge forward. Dark Link spun his sword, knocking Link's off its course. Link used the misguided motion to continue the circle, only to land on Dark Link's sword on his other side. Link shifted into several slashes, all of which Dark Link blocked.

"Well, something's got you mad."

"You float into the castle and try to kill Zelda, and yet you're surprised that _I'm_ mad?"

"I didn't think you had what it takes to seek me out."

"Well, I'm glad I proved you wrong." Link attacked again, each attempt blocked by Dark Link. Dark Link took the offensive, stabbing and slashing at Link, who blocked each blow. Link took a half a second to back up.

"What, are we retreating now?"

"Not on your life."

Dark Link charged forward, but Link jumped toward Dark Link, swinging his sword to his side. Dark Link, startled, tried to block, but was too late.

Link landed and spun around to see Dark Link standing there, clutching his right arm.

"Well then, it seems that the Hero of Time can fight."

"You got that right."

"Good. I like a skilled opponent." Dark Link let go of his arm and a small drop of pure darkness landed on the shadowed ground, sizzling as if on fire. "You drew blood. I don't remember the last time I saw my own blood. It feels good."

"Lets see if I can make you feel any better."

Dark Link laughed. "Good, Link."

Link charged again, this time dropping to his knees and sliding under Dark Link's sword. He jumped up and spun around, spinning his sword once more. Dark Link, however, managed to block this one. Link started swinging at Dark Link in a seemingly random set of slashes. Dark Link managed to block about half, but the rest left cuts in Dark Link's outfit.

"Vicious," Dark Link commented, examining the wounds. "Now it's my turn." He charged at Link, throwing his sword into the air. He ran up to Link, then jumped over Link's sword only to grab his and falling, sending Dark Link's sword cutting through Link's tunic. Link pulled back, clutching his shoulder. The wound wasn't deep, but it ran from his right shoulder almost all the way to right below the left side of his ribcage. He pushed through the pain and attacked Dark Link again.

For several hours, the only sounds were those of metal slamming into metal. The two fought nonstop, not even pulling back to assess injuries.

Fed up, Link jumped into the air, over Dark Link, dropped to the ground and spun his foot around, knocking Dark Link to the ground. Link placed one foot on Dark Link's chest and pointed the Master Sword at Dark Link's throat.

"I told you, you can't kill me."

"Then why don't you just leave me alone?" Link shouted.

"I am your shadow. My only purpose is to ruin everything you accomplish. Already, a rumor is spreading that you were the one to set fire to that market stall yesterday."

"You did it, didn't you?"

"Yes, I did. However, we look so much alike from a distance."

"A man died because of you!"

"He wasn't the first, and he most certainly wont be the last."

"Just leave us alone!"

"I told you, the only fun thing in life is to watch you suffer. I ruined your title, and soon I'll be after your little forest friend. After that, I'm coming after the grand prize, Queen Zelda herself!"

"Not if I can help it!" Link shouted, plunging the Master Sword into Dark Link's throat. Dark Link grunted, then started laughing.

"You fool, you can't kill me." Dark Link faded into the shadows and reappeared near where he had been. "Soon, Hero of Time, soon I'll show you exactly how dark your heart already is. You tried to kill me, Link. Let that fact bear on your conscience. Had I been a normal person, you would have been a murderer. I can see it now. Link, Hero of Time, Cursebreaker, Dreamweaver, Murderer." With that, Dark Link vanished into the receding darkness, the sun already rising on the Hero of Time, his clothes stained with his blood, his sword blackened with Dark Link's.


	27. Link Returns

**Chapter Twenty-Seven - Link Returns**

"Link!" Zelda shouted, rushing to Link, who had just stumbled into the castle. "Someone! Help!"

Within seconds, three guards and the doctor surrounded her. Link stood slowly and looked sadly at Zelda.

"I'm... sorry..." he said before collapsing to the ground.

-

"Ugh, where am I?" Link asked, trying to sit up. He fell back onto the bed as pain coursed through him.

"You're awake," Zelda said.

"It takes a bit more than a scratch to keep me down," he responded, sitting up again.

"What happened out there?"

"I really don't want to talk about it..."

"Was it that bad?"

"No, but..."

"But what?"

"I went too far, Zelda."

"What do you mean?" Zelda asked, walking over to him.

"I almost killed him. I ran him through with my sword. If he wasn't invincible, he would be lying dead out there."

"You tried your best."

"That's not what's wrong! I got mad and tried to kill him. I ran him through the throat! What if I get mad again like that? Who would I end up killing the next time?"

"You're not a killer."

"Yes I am! I took my sword and I cut open his throat! That would kill a normal person no exceptions!"

"He's not a normal person."

"So? That doesn't mean that I might not do the same to anyone else when provoked!"

"What got you that mad?"

"I, I can't say..."

Zelda nodded. "Don't worry. Whatever it was, I doubt it will happen again."

"But what if it does?"

"Then I'll be there to stop you."

Link moved a bit, and almost collapsed once more from the searing pain that rushed through his body. He fell back with a gasp as the pain tripled, then vanished.

"Link!"

"I'm... fine. Just... gimmie a sec."

"There's something that's preventing your blood from clotting. It's slowing the healing to a crawl. It will heal, but you'll have a bad scar."

"A reminder of what my anger leads to. The proof that even the Hero of Time has an evil side."

"Don't think like that."

"How am I supposed to think, Zelda?"

"I don't know, just not how you're thinking now! That Dark Link did something to you."

Link sighed. "I'll be fine, just give me some time."

Zelda nodded. "Just tell me if you need anything."

-

_If he hadn't said that I couldn't kill him, would I have done it? I don't think I would, but I don't know... I know I'm not a killer, but could exceptions be made for those who are invincible?_

Ignoring the immense pain that was telling him to stay down, Link stood up and walked to the door. Using most of his strength to open it, he stumbled out of the room, only to run into Zelda, who was on her way back to check up on him.

"Link, you shouldn't be up in your condition."

"I've been injured worse than this before."

"So? This time you're not healing as well."

"I don't care. I'm not stopping because of some cut."

"Stopping? What are you planning on doing?"

"Eating."

Zelda smiled. The Link she knew was back.

-

Dark Link walked into the Gerudo Fortress. After shouting at some guards for trying to arrest him, he entered a large building that was obviously important to the Gerudos.

"Ah, just the clone I wanted to see," Ganon commented as Dark Link came into view.

"I'm not a clone, I'm a shadow."

"Like I care? Just tell me how you're coming along."

Dark Link nodded. "Let's just say that the Hero of Time isn't quite so much the hero."

"So, the little twerp is taken care of. Now, continue where you left off."

"Sir?" Dark Link asked, surprised.

"You heard me. In his state, he can't be too hard to kill."

"He's injured."

"Which should make your job a whole lot easier."

"You want me to kill him while he's hurt?"

"Did I stutter?" Ganon asked, slightly aggravated.

"I may be evil, manipulative, and a monster, but I have enough honor to know it's not a fair fight if he's injured!"

Ganon sighed. "You and your honor. Fine. Give him time to heal, then follow up on your threats. Until then, you can help on my grand plan."

Dark Link nodded, an evil smirk spreading across his face. "Works for me."

-

"Link, you sure you're okay?" Saria asked.

Link nodded. "Besides the excruciating pain, I'm fine."

Zelda rolled her eyes as she sat down. "You're impossible, you know that?"

"Yup! Impossible to defeat, impossible to keep down, impossible to feed, the list goes on!"

"Here's one for you: impossible to deal with."

Link merely stuck his tongue out at Saria.

"Do you want your face to freeze like that? What would you do then, huh?"

"I'd have an interesting time eating food."

Saria sighed and stood up. "Well, I'd best be off now that you're okay."

Link froze. "No!"

"What?"

"Please, stay here for a few days."

Both Saria and Zelda stared at Link. "You're sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine, but please, stay for a few days."

Saria nodded. "If you insist."


	28. Why You Should Never Mix Salami With

**A/N: Ha! As of today, my story has been up an entire year! For a special bonus, and also because today is the 22nd, which has two twos, I present you with not one, but _two_ new chapters! Also, tomorrow I shall reveal another chapter, just because I'm nice! There's a slightly large time jump occuring here. Zelda decided to haul Link out of the castle on a picnic. And that's where we leave off.

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Chapter Twenty-Eight - Why You Should Never Mix Salami With Stalchildren

"Blegh," Link stated, staring at Zelda.

"Eh?" she asked, turning to stare back at him.

"Blegh," he repeated. "Blegh, blegh, blegh, blegh, blegh!"

"Uh, Link, you're kinda scaring me."

Link merely stuck his tongue out at her.

"Put your tongue back in your mouth before I decide to rip it out."

"If thou darest lay thy hands upon my tongue, then thy shalt feel the wrath of the Hero of Time!" Link shouted, jumping up. He still had his tongue out, impairing his speech.

Zelda laughed and stood. "Stick thy tongue inside thy mouth, and thy shalt not feel the wrath of thy unholy salami," she replied, brandishing a large salami.

"Oh yeah?" Link reached into the picnic basket and surfaced with a long stick of bread. "Thy unholy salami shall feel the wrath of my baguette of bad bashing!" he returned before withdrawing his tongue.

Zelda laughed. "The fight of the century. A baguette threatens the safety of the Queen! Fine then! Defend thyself against my salami scepter!" she lunged forward, using the salami as a sword.

Link backpedaled away from his impending doom by meat and sidestepped. He brought the baguette bopping down on Zelda's head. She pulled back and faced Link once more.

"How dare thee! Thou hast stricken me with bread! Knave!" she shouted, attacking Link with the salami. Link pretended to step away one second too late and Zelda stabbed him in the gut with the salami scepter.

Link fell back against the grass, faking immense pain. He opened his eyes and stared up at Zelda. "M-my Queen, I fear that my life has come to an end..."

She dropped to his side, feigning worry. "No... You must fight it. You must!"

"No...It-it is my fate. I was to be stricken down this very day... It has been written in the stars."

"I cannot lose you. What would I do without you?" she asked him, taking his hand in hers.

"D-don't let Hyrule fall. Keep it strong... for me..." He gasped, loosening his grip on Zelda's hands, letting it fall to the ground.

"No... No!" she shouted in mock horror. With a swift motion, she disarmed Link of his baguette and grabbed it, beating him senselessly upon the head.

"Hey!" he shouted, rolling out of the way. He jumped up as Zelda rose to her feet, brandishing the baguette. "That's my baguette of bad bashing! Unhand it, foul salami-user!"

Zelda laughed. "Oh yeah? Well, it looks like you've been unbreaded, as it were." She charged forward, using the twin wrath of the salami and baguette to fight, reminding him of the Gerudo fighting style.

It was Link's turn to laugh. With a swift swing, Link unsheathed the Master Sword and cut the baguette in two. Ever resourceful, he jumped forward and grabbed the cut half of the baguette.

"Hey! Just because you halved my baguette of bad bashing doesn't mean that you've halved your impending doom!"

Link stabbed the Master Sword into the ground, leaned on its hilt, and choked down the half of the baguette he had rescued. "Oh really? My impending doom? At the hands of salami?"

Neither of them could stand it any more. Both breaking into raucous laughter, they sat back down on the sheet, Zelda laying her unholy salami scepter back into the basket.

"Now _that_ was priceless! Zelda, if there ever was anything more creative, I wouldn't know it."

Zelda laughed, taking a large bite out of the baguette. She leaned back against a tree, relaxing. Swallowing, she laughed. "Your baguette of bad bashing has an interesting taste to it."

"You smacked me in the head with it! How do you think it's going to taste?"

"A mite better than it does." Instead of eating the baguette piece, she instead threw it at Link. The baguette flew true, smacking him directly in the forehead.

"Hey! Watch it!"

She laughed. "So, does that mean you enjoyed our little picinic?"

Link nodded. "It's food, you, and outside all bottled into one quite interesting basket. A very nice mixture, I might add."

She chuckled and stood up. "Shall we take a venture into the mysterious woodland areas that lie to the south? Hike up the looming Death Mountain? Race down along the Zora Domain?"

Link did a double take. "Since when did you hike? Or explore, for that matter."

"Eh. I feel a bit energetic. Besides, I'm just a little girl looking to have some fun."

"A little girl? You're eighteen. You're older than me!"

"Barely. Besides, little girl or not, I just wanna go do something fun. You've been everywhere, seen everything, so, you tell me, where's a good place to goof off at?"

Link laughed. "Well, um, there's that new archery place over at Kakariko..."

"Sounds fun. Shall we go?"

"It's a long walk. Want to take my shortcut?"

"Ooh, a shortcut..."

Link pulled out his Ocarina, played a few notes, and grabbed Zelda's arm as they were surrounded by purple lights. Suddenly, the lights vanished and they stood atop a platform above Kakariko graveyard.

Silently, Link descended into the graveyard itself, followed by Zelda. They quietly walked passed the numerous graves and left the graveyard, entering Kakariko itself.

Link and Zelda ran over to the large building that had just finished construction. Link opened the door and the man inside greeted them.

"Come for a game? Only twenty Rupees."

Link handed him the money and strung his bow. Taking the fifteen arrows from the man, he aimed for the fast-moving Rupee targets. He let loose the first arrow and watched as he target shattered. He laughed as he shot at several more targets.

At the end of the game, he counted up his score. "Eh, not bad, but not my best."

"Mind if I have a try?" Zelda asked.

Link shrugged and handed her his bow. As she examined it, the man handed Link the fifteen arrows, which he handed to Zelda.

"Alright. You ready?"

Link watched as the targets soon came into motion. With speed like lightning, Zelda unleashed a storm of arrows, each one shattering its target. After just a few seconds, Zelda returned the bow to Link and the five extra arrows to the man.

"A perfect score! Well, here's your prize." The man handed Zelda a large purple Rupee, of which she handed to Link after they left.

"Wow. Since when could you shoot like that?" Link asked, amazed.

"I've always been good with a bow. Better than with a sword, at least."

"Hey, you're pretty good with a sword as it is. Or at least salami."

Zelda laughed as she dropped to the ground, jumping off the stairs. "Well, a sword, or salami for that matter, is a little more dangerous. An arrow has only one pointy tip and can be shot from far away. I'm less likely to get my head lobbed off."

Link shrugged as he rolled off of the steps and landed deftly on his feet. "Well, you've got a good point. You could have told me you're good at archery, though."

"Why?"

"Because it would have been nice to know."

Zelda shrugged and started to walk off, but stopped. "Now what?"

"Well, you just shattered my record at this, so that leaves me out of ideas. I'd take you fishing, but you'd probably land a fifty-pounder or something."

Zelda laughed. "I doubt that. I don't have enough patience for fishing. So, any other ideas?"

Link thought for a moment. "Have I ever introduced you to Epona?"

-

Zelda shouted in delight as Epona vaulted over the fence. Link laughed at her outburst and urged Epona on. Link felt the wind rush past him, droplets of water stinging his face as they fell. It had just started raining, but Zelda seemed encouraged by this. She had changed when Epona had started, switching from reserved, diplomatic, well-spoken Queen to the exhilarated and fascinated tomboy Link knew she really was.

Epona dashed over the field, darted around the trees, then turned around and took off again, never once slowing. Zelda laughed as Epona did a tight turn around the Lon Lon Ranch and sped past, leaping over the mysterious low wall that ran along Hyrule Field.

Then the lightning that Link had hoped wasn't there shot through the sky, made even more impressive by the clap of thunder that brought Zelda to a stop.

"Link..."

"Don't worry, Zelda. We're heading back." He turned Epona back to the castle. As they darted across the Field, a bolt of lightning slammed into the ground in front of them, causing Epona to rise up on her hind legs, trying to back up too fast.

Link fought to control Epona, to bring her back to her senses. He was almost thrown off, but only by sheer luck was he left on. Epona shot forward, leaping across the wall, and that's when Link felt the rumbling and the cry for help. Link instantly forced Epona to stop. She unwillingly turned around and Link brought her to the wall.

In front of them four Stalchildren were attempting to drag Zelda off. Link drew his sword and held it in the air as Epona whinnied, rising up on her hind legs once more as a bolt of lightning struck behind Link.

He charged toward the Stalchildren, sword in hand. Two of them released Zelda and tried to run, but Link brought his sword down and severed both of their skull heads. He circled around as the other two advanced toward him.

Swinging his blade, Link crumbled one and Epona smashed through the fourth. Link slowed Epona and stopped her next to Zelda. Link held out his hand.

"My lady, come along, for we must ride hard and ride fast."

Zelda took his hand and he helped her up. She slid into the saddle behind Link, wrapping her arms around his waist as Epona launched forward toward the castle.

Ordinarily, Stalchildren wouldn't scare Zelda, but there was something in Link's eye that scared her to the bone. He was afraid, afraid and worried. Someone or something was out here tonight, and Link was afraid of it. She couldn't care if a hundred Stalchildren stood in their way, this..._ thing_... was more terrifying than all of them, and all of it was only a look in the eye of the courageous Hero of Time.

Zelda heard Epona's hooves clatter on the drawbridge moments before it rose. Epona skidded to a stop once they got inside.

Link sighed, breathing heavily. Zelda could feel his entire body shaking from the adrenaline pulsing through his system. "We made it. Perfect timing," he said, trying to reign in his body as he had done Epona.

"Link?"

"Yeah, Zelda?"

"What was out there?"

"_He_ was, Zelda, _he_ was..."

Across the darkened hills a lone figure stood, watching the Stalchildren as they rose from the ground.

_Heh. Clever, as always. It was worth a try, at least. I guess I'll have to be a bit more... forceful next time._

The figure stepped forward into the darkness, sinking into the shadows once again.


	29. Another Encounter With Dark Link

**A/N: See? Two chapters! Told ya! Well, read on, enjoy your little One Year present, and review!

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Chapter Twenty-Nine - Another Encounter With Dark Link

Link and Zelda burst into the castle just as another bolt of lightning ripped through the clouds, startling Saria. She gasped and fell back as Link walked into the large room.

"Nice entrance," she grumbled, sitting back up.

"Sorry. Had a little accident out there."

"What?" Saria asked, concerned. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Zelda almost got nabbed by the Stalchildren, though."

"But I'm fine now, no worries," Zelda interjected.

Saria nodded. "That's good. You might wanna go get some rest. Kidnappings usually take a bit out of people."

Zelda laughed. "Well, yeah. The whole adrenaline bit's starting to wear out. G'night guys," she said, walking up the stairs to her room.

Link sat down in the chair across from Saria. "Remind me to let Epona rest for a few days."

"I'm sure she understands. You'd be surprised how much animals, particularly horses, actually understand. With Zelda probably freaking out and the lightning, I'm sure she was just as anxious to leave as Zelda was."

"Yeah, and me too."

"You? You were afraid?" Saria asked, surprised.

"Not of the Stalchildren."

"Then of what? Something's got you tense these past few days. First, you demand that I not leave, and then Zelda actually asked me what the best way to get your mind of things was."

"So _that's_ why she had that picnic idea. Trying to unstress me."

"Unstress isn't a word. But yeah, that's the reason. What's got you wound up tighter than a clock?"

"You remember when I was telling you about my adventures the first time I beat Ganon?"

"Yeah..."

"In the Water Temple, I ran across someone, someone I'll never forget. It was me, but an evil me. Dark Link. Well, he's sore about me beating him and he's set out to destroy my life, starting with my friends."

"Meaning me," Saria said, connecting the dots.

"Yeah. Remember when I stormed out of the castle and came back the next day all but dead? That was the day I went out after him. I would have killed him if he wasn't invincible. That's when he threatened me with that. That's why I didn't want you to leave. I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to worry, but I guess it's better that you know."

"And tonight?"

"Well, I'm not one hundred percent sure how, but he had something to do with the Stalchildren trying to get Zelda. I'm positive I saw him in the shadows while we were riding away."

Saria nodded. "Okay. Thanks for telling me. Listen, if there's anything I can do to help, just tell me."

"Thanks for the offer, but at this point all we can do is keep me healthy and you and Zelda close so I can get there fast. I'm the only person who even stands a chance of beating him, and that's only because he's me, just twisted."

She stood up. "You're right. You should get some rest, just in case. It would really be bad if he popped up when you were worn out."

He nodded and followed suit, rising to his feet. He walked up the stairs and down the corridor to his room. Opening the small door, he stepped into the pitch black of his room.

"Well, well, well, look who we've got here."

Link sighed. "Can't you just leave me alone for a few days? I'm not up for fighting right now."

Dark Link, slowly becoming visible in the moonlight, laughed as he sat down on the windowsill. "No, I'm not here to fight you right now. Just thought I'd commend you on your escape earlier."

"I knew you had a hand in that."

"Well of course. You're not the only one who knows Skull Keeta. That, however, is beside the point. I see that you told the wood child about her predicament."

"Saria? Yeah. She has a right to know that you're scheming something."

"You can tell her that she's safe for the next day or two. I have a few other things to do."

"Other things? Like what?"

"Wouldn't you like to know…"

Link sighed, sitting down on the edge of his bed. "Just tell me. You're going to sooner or later."

"Well, that just ruins the fun. For your information, I wasn't going to gloat until _after_ I finished with the girl and the Queen."

"Just spill, will you?"

Fine. Spoil sport... You're not the only thing Ganon has on his priority list. Now, he doesn't know I'm telling you this, but I figure you have a right to know. Question: what do you know about the royal side of war?"

"Royal side? You mean the whole 'calling the banners' bit?"

"Yeah."

"Nothing."

"Well, you see, in a war, an army is gathered and they march on the castle of the defending nation. A smart general will gather about twice as many troops as the defending castle has. Now, when a King's, or Queen's, land is in danger of such an attack, all those loyal to the 'Crown,' the Royal Family, can be instructed to summon their troops to provide reinforcements. This can sometimes prevent the attacking force from overrunning the castle and sometime even win the battle."

Link started at Dark Link. "I understood about half of that. Got an example?"

"Well, let us say, theoretically of course, that Ganon gathered a giant army twice the size of Hyrule's army and marched on Hyrule. In this theoretical war, Zelda would easily lose. However, given prior knowledge of this pretend battle, she could hypothetically tell King Zora and Darunia to supply her with more soldiers. Using these assumed soldiers, she could protect herself from Ganon's made-up attack and live through it, assuming of course that all of this was real and not an example, which it is just an example."

Link nodded. "Simple enough." He watched as Dark Link rose up to a standing position, precariously balanced on the edge of the window.

"Tell me, Link, why do you fight?"

"I fight to protect Hyrule from Ganon and any others who think they can threaten it."

Dark Link sighed. "No, that's what you fight for. Tell me, _why_ do you fight?"

"Because it's the right thing to do."

Dark Link smirked in the darkness. "So, you mean to tell me that you put your life on the line fighting for something that not even the smartest people in the world can explain?"

"That's one way to put it."

"And the 'right' thing is based on your morals, yes?" Once Link nodded, Dark Link continued, "And if those morals were challenged by a command from, say, Zelda?"

"She would never tell me to do something that I disagreed with."

"Well, let's play pretend again and say she did. Then what?"

"I'd refuse to do it."

"The way I look at it, you'd have three choices. Do what you are told and don't tell anyone, do what you're told and tell someone, or don't do it."

Link nodded, understanding what Dark Link was getting at. "Might as well tell if you have to do it, isn't that right?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Dark Link said innocently. "I shall see you in a day or two, then," he commented, taking a step back and plummeting out the window.

"And so you shall," Link replied to the wind and the empty room.

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**A/N: Alright! Review if you don't mind (I really enjoy reading them and will respond in next chappie if there's any tomorrow. Otherwise, Chapter 31 awaits!) and I shall post Thirty tomorrow, just for you guys, 'kay? Have fun!**


	30. An Adventure with Ruto

**A/N: As I promised!

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Chapter Thirty - An Adventure With Ruto

Link awoke to the bright sunlight pouring into his room, temporarily blinding him. He groaned as he sat up, blocking the light with his hand. He rose to his feet, only to see a figure standing next to the window.

"Good morning," Ruto's voice greeted him, although it didn't sound quite like her.

Link walked over to her, turning away from the light so he wasn't blinded. "Same to you."

She laughed as she realized his problem. Stepping back into the partial shade, she smiled. "This better?"

As she stepped back, Link was able to see her more clearly. He realized now that he was taken aback at her new look.

"Wow..."

She laughed again. "Am I that amazing?" she asked.

Instead of the person Link had met before, she had been completely changed. Her skin had changed to some sort of bluish tone. Her forearms seemed to have sprouted fins of some sort; long, folded attachments that seemed to shift colors as she moved. The same sort of fins had also grown at her waist, flowing back and down behind her legs. Her head had been reshaped, favoring a more streamlined look. Her entire body seemed to have been streamlined, now that he thought about it. He also noticed that the bluish color of her skin gave way to a stunning shade of silver as he got closer.

Her now-violet eyes scanned Link over as she noticed him examining her as well. "You like?" she asked mischievously. She spread her arms out, making the 'fins' unfold and glisten in the morning light.

"You look amazing..." Link commented.

"Why thank you," she replied. She brought her arms back down to her side and strode over to the other side of the room. "So, what have you been up to lately?"

"Oh, the usual," Link responded. "Saving the good guys, fighting the bad guys, stuff like that."

"What, not been having fun in the wonderland that is Hyrule?"

Link shook his head. "Not really."

"Then you're missing out! Here, come with me!" she exclaimed, grabbing his arm and pulling him towards the door. Giving in, he let her drag him out of the castle. As they passed through the Market, Link inwardly laughed as several people stopped to stare at the Zora Princess dragging the Hero of Time through the town.

She stopped once they reached Hyrule Field. After several seconds of deliberation, she walked to the left, stopping at the bridge across the river. She stopped and quickly grabbed a small bag hidden in the bushes, which she thrust at Link.

He took the back and emptied it. Out fell what seemed to be a tunic, yet none he had ever seen before. It was a deep blue and it seemed to have been made out of some sort of special fabric, although he wasn't sure of its uses.

"Well?" she asked after a second or two had passed.

"Well, it looks nice..."

"Just put it on."

Link jerked off his green tunic and replaced it with the blue one. Instantly, he felt hotter, which he assumed was not a good sign.

Ruto, who had walked up to her waist in the river that flowed by them, turned back to Link. "Come on! The water's waiting!"

Without hesitating, Link dived into the water. The cool water rushed by him as he looked at Ruto. "What's this tunic made of?"

"Special Zora material," she replied, walking further in. "It'll let you breathe underwater, but out of the water, you'll feel like you're burning up a lot."

Link nodded as she dived into the deeper part of the river. She shot forward, the water rushing around her as if it was naturally made to do so. Later, Link would realize that it _was _naturally made to do so, her being a Zora. Link swam as close to her as he could.

"Where are we swimming to?"

"Lake Hylia," she replied, slowing a bit.

Link laughed. "You know, I have a faster way of getting there."

"Oh really? And how is that?" she asked, stopping and turning to Link, who explained the Serenade of Water and its teleportation properties.

"Well," she started after he finished, "that doesn't sound too fun. Takes the swimming out of travel."

Link shrugged as well as he could, being in the middle of the river; the water was already easily over his head. "Well, then, just for you, we shall swim."

Ruto laughed mysteriously. "Of all things I thought you'd say, that wasn't one of them."

"And why not?"

"You don't remember?" she asked. He shook his head. She sighed. "Well, back before the curse, before your adventures, before your first time jump, I wasn't exactly the nicest person you've ever met."

"Oh? And why is that? More importantly, how is that?" Link asked, starting to swim forward lazily.

She followed suit. "You remember Lord Jabu-Jabu? Well, you may or may not remember, but part of your 'assignment' from Zelda was to get the Spiritual Stone of Water, or the Zora Sapphire. Well, naturally, I had it, and you went into Lord Jabu-Jabu to save me and get it. Well, I was a stuck-up spoiled brat at this point. My father always babied me and the whole 'princess' bit went to my head. So, obviously, I wasn't nice to you at all. I should have helped more, actually. And I'm not even counting how I acted _after_ the seven years passed!"

"Why? What happened then?"

"Are you getting _any_ of your memory back? Any at all?"

"Eh, a little. It comes and goes here and there."

"Link, the Zora Sapphire was intended to be used as my engagement ring."

Link stopped abruptly. "And you said that this was one of the things I had to collect on my adventure?" She nodded. "So, are you saying that...I'm...and we're...?"

She laughed. "No, no, no. Of course not. However, I assumed we were when you returned, but that's history now. I'm more or less over you and you're in love with Zelda, yes?"

Link took a half a second to think about how over someone a person was when they said 'more or less,' then nodded. "Yeah, I am. Of course, I don't know how _she_ feels about _me_, but I'm assuming the best. Assuming or hoping, at least."

Ruto dived down and resurfaced a second or two later. "Well, from what I can tell, it's pretty obvious."

Link sighed, letting the current carry him toward Lake Hylia. "Obvious or not, she hasn't _said_ it, so she could feel anything and I'd have no clue."

Rut nodded thoughtfully. "I know how you feel there," she said, as if recalling something sad.

It took Link a second to realize that she was referring to him. "Hey, listen, I'm sorry about any way I may have acted before the curse. I wasn't me, or, well, I wasn't the me now. And you have to realize, I was ten. I had no idea what I was doing."

She nodded and half-smiled. "I know. I'll freely admit, I'm not all the way over it, but I'm working on it. You don't have to worry about me getting in the way of you and Zelda. I'm behind you two all the way. Now," she said with a sinister grin, "what say we hurry along to Lake Hylia?"

-

They had spent the entire day at Lake Hylia. For the most part, they swam and played around in the water, even trying a 'who can stay underwater longer' contest. Of course, with Ruto being a Zora and Link wearing the blue tunic, it had quickly been declared a stalemate. They had stopped by the Domain to eat, meaning that Link had choked down some strange combination of underwater plants, fish, and something Ruto referred to as the 'chicken of the sea,' even though it tasted nothing like any chicken he had eaten. Then they had explored the Water Temple, which had taken longer that they had expected. As Link and Ruto surfaced, they noticed that the sun was already setting on the Lake, a pathway of reddish-gold shining on the water's surface.

"Wow. Think we ought to get back?"

"Well, I know I'd suggest it. It just hit me that no one over there knows where you are. I'm sure Zelda's worried sick."

"Mind if we take my shortcut?"

Ruto shrugged as she and Link swam to the island. Link pulled out the blue-white Ocarina of Time and held up his empty hand to Ruto, who placed her own hand in his. He tightened his grip as he ran his free hand over the holes, the notes ringing crystal clear across the Lake. Suddenly, everything vanished in a yellow rush of light and was replaced by the familiar Temple of Time.

"Oh, thank the Goddesses!" Zelda exclaimed, rushing into the Temple. She stopped in front of the two of them. "Okay, I'm gonna give you a minute to straighten out your story because this has got to be one serious misunderstanding on my part."

Link hastily let go of Ruto's hand. "You know you need to be holding on to the other person for the song to work."

Zelda looked at Ruto for a second. "Ruto?"

Ruto nodded. "Yeah, that's me."

"You, um, realize that you're, uh, not wearing anything, right?"

Ruto seemed to find this quite funny. "Well of course I know! I favor a more practical approach. Clothes make living in water hard. Is there a problem?"

"Well, not that I'm aware of... Where were you two all day?"

Link spoke up. "We went swimming."

"All day?"

"Well, we stopped for lunch and to explore the Water Temple..."

"Oh, okay. Well, at least you're safe."

Link nodded. "Well of course I am! It takes more than one day than to take me down! It takes way too much to keep me down, so no one bothers anymore! Now, no offense to the Domain or the Zoras, but I'm hungry and fish ain't cuttin' it, so I'll see you later, after dinner, 'kay?" With a nod from Zelda, Link ran out of the Temple.

Ruto waked up to Zelda. "Don't worry; I don't plan on trying to win Link again. He loves you, you know. I don't want to make life any harder on him; Jabu knows he's already been through too much as it is." She walked to the exit of the Temple of Time, waited a second, and then turned to face Zelda once more.

"You found the best dog in the kennel and you've been handed the largest bone in the world. Don't make him try to hard for it or else he might decide it's not worth it to try to get it." And with that, she left.

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**A/N: Note that I'm not calling Link a dog. I couldn't think up any better analogies that didn't sound wierd.**


	31. Dark Link's Next Attack

**A/N: Well, I bring you three more chapters! Here's the first, so enjoy! Also, I have just noticed that whenever I switch between people, the enters I use are erased so sometime, when I get around to it, I'm gonna have to reformat most of the pages, but that'll be later. >> stands for a forward move in time and the -- means character change.

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Chapter Thirty-One - Dark Link's Next Attack

Zelda watched Ruto leave, thinking about what she said. "She's obviously got a point. That and she's been on Link's side of this, whether she knows I know or not," Zelda said to thin air, hoping that by voicing this, she would come to a solid conclusion. "If I could just make sense of it all, then..."

"Then it would be a lot easier," Impa finished, stepping from the shadows. "Then we could know what needed to be done. However, I agree with Ruto. You need to figure out your feelings for him before he thinks it's hopeless and moves on."

"I know, but, well, I don't know, okay? I have no idea what I'm doing, what I'm being told, or what I'm supposed to do! I'm so confused..." she groaned. She fell back against the wall of the Temple of Time, sliding down into a sitting position. "Why can't someone write a guide or something to this? I mean, I don't want to lose him, but, well..." She sighed and dropped her head, looking at the tile that was the floor of the Temple. "It's so simple, it's complicated."

Impa nodded. "If it was simple, there wouldn't be half as many problems in this world."

"Impa, I know how he feels, as does everyone else, and they wouldn't hesitate to tell me so. I know how I feel about him, too, but why do I find it so hard to tell him that? It's almost like every time I try to, something happens, or something comes up."

"Well, you might want to try a bit harder before something happens."

Zelda nodded, her face still obscured, and rose to her feet. She walked to the exit of the Temple and looked up at Impa. Her eyes were glistening with fresh tears, but there was a fierce determination in her eyes that was echoed in her voice. "Well, let's hope that that something doesn't happen too soon, shall we?"

>>

"Hey Link!" Saria shouted as she saw said Hero of Time emerge from the kitchens. Link nodded a greeting in her direction as she followed him up the stairs, passing in front of him. "Where were you all day? Zelda and I were worried sick!"

"I went out on an excursion with Ruto."

"Which means that you two did _what_, exactly?"

"Nothing happened between us, okay? We went swimming at Lake Hylia, stopped by the Domain to eat, and explored the Water Temple. That's all."

Saria thought for a second before shrugging. "Well, next time, do you mind leaving us a note or something telling us that you've gone somewhere?"

"No prob. I'll just mention that next time I'm dragged off somewhere. Now, if you will excuse me, I'm gonna head off upstairs."

Saria nodded and started to move out of his way, then stopped. "Link, please... You might not understand, but whenever you do stuff like this and vanish into thin air, it's rough on Zelda and me, Zelda especially. She loves you Link, whether or not she tells you so. If something happened to you during one of your escapades, she'd never forgive herself. Nor would I..." She passed by him once again and started walking down the steps.

Link watched her for a second, and then inquired, "What did you mean by that last part?"

Saria turned to look at Link, trying her best to look like she had meant it in a friendly way, but Link had that inescapable feeling that the sadness that belied it meant otherwise. "Oh, just that I'd worry too. We _are_ best friends, after all." She attempted a smile with only partial success. "Besides, the mind of a Kokiri works different than yours." She sighed before walking away, leaving a slightly confused Link standing on the stairway.

>>

Link sighed, looking at the darkened sky. _My life is starting to get way too confusing. It's a rare occurrence, but times like these really make me miss the days before I broke the curse. Back then, life was simpler. It was just me and Sarah, together to face the world at large. There are some times when I wish that I could revisit the times before the curse, even if I did have to make up with Zelda again. I don't know, though. Hyrule's a pretty awesome place. Dark Link's the main problem, though._

_What did he mean with the whole war thing? Would Ganon really be stupid enough to declare war? He'd get trounced fast, seeing as how the Gerudo and those monsters of his don't stand a chance against me alone, let alone the entire force of Hyrule. Wait..._

Link ran over to the table, jerking a map from the shelf behind him. _If he gets enough monsters to put us at two to one odds and he puts them here, then he could force us to face the brunt of his troops with limited amounts of ours..._

He marked off several places on the map, delving deeply into to possibilities of what could happen. He was so deep in he didn't hear the door open.

"Link?" Zelda asked, walking in.

"Over here," he replied, not looking away from the map.

_Alright, just go over there and say it._ "Could I talk to you for a second?"

"Can it wait until later? I'm sorry, but I just had an idea and, knowing me, if I don't figure it out I'll forget it."

She sighed, crestfallen. "Oh, okay. I'll... talk to you later, then. Bye." She started out the door.

"Listen, I'm really sorry. I'll make up for it, okay? Just name the price," he replied, smiling.

She nodded. "Okay."

Closing the door behind her, she sighed and fell back against the wall, sliding to the ground. "So close..."

>>

Link groaned as he sat up. It seemed that he had fallen asleep on the map, which was really uncomfortable. He stood up and stumbled sleepily to the door. He opened it and in slumped Zelda's limp form. Surprised, Link bent down to wake her, with no success. He picked her up and carried her over to his bed. As he placed her on said bed, he noticed something small and purple all over her. He picked a piece of it off of her and watched it disintegrate.

"Great," he growled, grabbing his sword. _She's not going to be out for more than a few minutes; what I'm concerned with is _why_ she's got it on her..._

As if on cue, Link heard a shout echo through the castle.

"Link!" Saria shouted as a dark figure materialized in front of her. Within seconds, Link was beside her.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't the great Hero of Time, just in time to see today's performance. You know why I'm here and what I want, I presume?" Dark Link asked.

"Saria, get out of here, now!"

"What, don't want your wood sprite to hear what I have planned?"

"Not when it comes to you."

"It's nothing much. First, I'm gonna kill you, and then I'm going to grab her and take her to the Gerudo Fortress. I'll take away everything she has, and then I'll-"

"Just shut up!" Link shouted.

"Seems I've struck a nerve. You don't want to know what happens next?"

"What do you want with me?" Saria demanded, scared to death, but still not leaving just in case she could help.

"Oh, it's not you I want. You're just an exciting means to the end," Dark Link replied, his trademark smirk already plastered on his face.

"You're not going to lay a hand on her," Link said, baring his sword.

"Oh, really? Saria, right? Well, Saria, if you will just let me do him in first, we can continue the whole 'kidnap and torture' thing, okay?"

"You couldn't kill Link if you tried."

"Well then, I guess I'll have to try extra hard, hmm?" Dark Link drew his own sword and stabbed at Link, who dropped to the ground and lunged forward, slamming himself into Dark Link's legs, sending the shadow sprawling. Link jumped up and slashed at Dark Link, but before the blow could connect, Dark Link rolled to the side and sprang up as well.

Link turned his slash to the side, his sword blocked by Dark Link's sword. Dark Link spun his sword in a wide arc and knocked Link off balance. Stepping into the gap, Dark Link brought his right fist to collide with Link's stomach. Link grunted, but pushed past the sudden loss of breath and sliced the air with his sword, trying to make contact with Dark Link, to no avail. Link stepped back to assess Dark Link's next move.

As if on cue, both rushed forward and brought their swords down to collide with each other. Having done the same move, however, both swords crashed into each other and bounced off. Dark Link took advantage of this and lunged forward once more, this time skewering Link through with his blade.

Link gasped as the sword in his gut sent shockwaves of pain coursing through him. As Dark Link slid his now red sword out, Link dropped to his knees and, with a final exhale, fell to the ground.

"Now, I believe you're coming with me." Dark Link turned to Saria, who was frozen with shock and fear.

"L-Link..." she managed to choke out as tears started running down her face, the realization that Link was lying dead in the middle of the room hitting her like a ton of bricks.

"I told you. I said that I'd kill him and then you and I could go _take an adventure_."

Those words froze Saria to the bone. Link had said them before, and then they sounded alright. Now, though, even though Dark Link sounded exactly like Link, those words sounded as if they were coated in poison.

"Y-you monster!"

He laughed. "You could say that. Actually, you're free to say that. It has a nice ring to it, don't you think? Now, you're coming with-" Dark Link started, but suddenly, a sword erupted from the shadow's chest. He grunted and turned around once the sword was removed.

"Game set and match," Link said. A large amount of blood was on his tunic, but otherwise he seemed alright. He pointed the Master Sword, blackened by Dark Link's blood, at his counterpart.

"B-but how? No mortal could survive that blow!"

Link smiled as a fairy revealed itself before flying away. "I am the Hero of Time. I am Cursebreaker, Dreamweaver, as close to an Oracle as anyone has been. Never confuse me with anything else, for I have the entire universe on my side. Now, leave!"

Dark Link glared at Link, but walked over to the window. "Well, Sage, I guess I'll have to finish this later. Until then, I bid you a fond farewell." Dark Link took one step back and fell out of sight.

Saria ran to Link, embracing him, her tears still flowing freely. "I thought he had killed you. I thought you were gone. I thought..."

Link returned the embrace. "I'm here now, so no worries. I thought I was a goner for a second there too. My body's still screaming that I'm dead even though my mind says I'm not."

"You're gonna be okay though, right?" she asked looking up at him.

"Yeah, just gotta rest soon. Gimmie time to heal and all."

She let go of him and wiped her eyes with her sleeve. Link nodded and opened the door.

"Come on."

"Where are we going?" she asked as she exited the room.

"Downstairs. You really don't need to be up here right now, especially with all that blood. It's not good for your health." He sighed. "I'm really just glad nothing happened to you. If he had got you, or I hadn't got there in time, I'd never forgive myself."

She smiled. "Well, he didn't, and you did, so let's not worry about the ifs, shall we?" Link returned the smile as they entered the main room.

"Saria! Link! What happened!" Zelda shouted as they came into view. Both of them were coated in blood, but neither seemed too injured.

"Don't worry. We're fine," Link responded. "Morning's ruined, but beyond that..."

"You're both covered in blood! How is that alright?"

"Oh," Saria merely said, looking down at her outfit. "Um, this isn't my blood, if that makes you feel any better."

"Then whose is it?" Zelda asked, confused by this declaration.

"It's mine," Link said.

"Yours? How did you lose all that blood? Better yet, how are you still alive after losing all that blood?"

"Yeah, mine. Dark Link came back and tried to take Saria. And as for how I'm still alive, trust me, my entire body's screaming that I'm not."

"Huh?"

"I'm okay," Link replied before walking down the steps. "Now, I'm no doctor, but you might wanna go change. Immersing yourself in my blood can't be good for your health either." Saria nodded and walked back up the steps to her room.

"Now, are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. He'll be back, though, so I've gotta get my rest."

"Who's next?"

"What do you mean?"

Zelda walked over to Link. "Don't play games, Link. There's a creepy killer after anything to do with you. Who's he coming after next?"

Link sighed. "He's coming after you. Again."

"Tell me what happened. Please."

Link nodded. "When I chased him down, we fought, and I knocked him to the ground. He then told me his only reason for existence was to ruin my life. He said he'd turn everyone against me, then come after Saria, then you." He looked at her, worry reflected in his eyes. "I won't let him. I'll do anything to stop him. He won't get you."

"You need to rest before you can protect anyone." Zelda led Link up the stairs to his room, but he stopped at the door.

"No, not here. It's too bloody. Somewhere else, please."

Zelda nodded and helped the deteriorating Link into an adjacent room.

>>

"Heh. It seems that he has a few tricks up his sleeve as well. I'll just have to be extra careful when I go for the Queen." Dark Link stood up, his black eyes scanning the lands of Hyrule. As the sun set, he frowned, watching the light spread, choking out the darkness.

"Too bad, though. I was looking forward to having some fun with that girl. Oh well. It can't be helped. I guess I'll just have to vent on some of the Gerudos." He vanished as the major darkness faded completely.


	32. What's Wrong With Saria

**A/N: And the second one!**

* * *

**Chapter Thirty-Two - What's Wrong With Saria**

"You can't keep us in here forever, you know," an icy voice commented.

"Oh yeah? Just watch me," a second voice replied.

"We are even stronger now that the curse has lifted. You would do well not to underestimate us."

"You pose no threat to me."

"We will when we take your head as a trophy."

"Neither of you couldn't lay a finger on me even if you tried."

"But you see, we don't have to lay a finger on you, old man. It's the magic that is the danger."

"And it is the magic that is useless that's unimportant."

"These bars won't hold us forever!" a third voice shouted angrily.

"They don't need to hold forever, just long enough for Link to defeat Ganon."

"You're despicable," the first voice said.

"No, I'm cautious. I know that if you broke free before the Evil King fell, Hyrule would fall apart. I don't like that possibility, so you're not going free until Ganon loses."

"Listen to me. If we two get loose at _any_ time, you'll not only feel our wrath but those four as well." There was a slight shaking that echoed around the area.

"And you can get them on your side?"

"We did once."

"No, _Ganon_ did once. He did the same to you."

"Why you insolent-" the third voice exploded.

"Shush. Link is waking and the Great Fairy at Death Mountain is stirring."

"And how are those related?"

There was a small light emanating from a pool of water. Inside was reflected thousands of trees. Barely visible in the mass of trees was a small child on a tree stump.

"She links them."

* * *

Link woke up. For a split second, his entire body writhed in a sudden spasm of pain, and then it vanished in mere seconds. "I'll never get used to that," he complained, standing up and walking to the large mirror that hung above the dresser. 

Link ran his fingers back through his messy blonde hair. He groaned as he watched the fairy magic finish its job, making the would-be scar fade from existence. He sighed, looking at the remaining long scar that ran diagonally across his chest, proof of Dark Link's malice.

"Does it still hurt?"

Link shook his head. "No, not physically, at least. A mental burden if there ever was one."

Zelda placed her hand on his right arm. "You know if there was anything I could do, I'd do it in a heartbeat, right?"

He nodded, turning around to face her. "I know. However, this is a burden I have to carry alone."

She took his hands in hers. "Link, there's something I want to tell you."

"Yeah?"

"I, well, I-" she started, but was interrupted by a knock at the door. It slowly opened to reveal a guard.

"Ser Link, there's a problem at the stables that requires your immediate attention."

Link sighed. "Will you excuse me?"

Zelda nodded. "Go ahead. I'll talk to you later."

"Okay." He followed the guard out the door.

"Epona, calm down!" Link shouted at the horse. Epona whinnied fearfully and once again reared up on her hind legs, kicking at the door. It splintered and then shattered. Epona started to gallop off, but Link pulled out his Ocarina and played a few notes.

The horse froze. After a second, she turned back to Link, calm. He smiled and swung up on top of her. "Good girl. Now, what say we ride a bit?"

>>

Link rode out of Hyrule Castle Town and onto the expanse of rolling hills that was Hyrule Field. He felt the wind stream across him as Epona sped up. Link felt her muscles tighten and loosen as she vaulted over one of the fences. He belted out a whoop as Epona dashed forward. Neither of them knew where they were going; all that mattered was that they were riding, free from any momentary cares. Sure, Link would return to the castle and resume his vigilant watch against Dark Link after awhile, but until then...

He urged Epona onward, the adrenaline rushing through his body. She replied in turn, pushing her own limits as they shot over another fence. Link shouted again as they left the ground, holding his sword in the air. Epona landed, still rushing forward. At the edge of his view, he saw one of the many Poes that haunted these fields. Epona, too, saw it, and started to slow. Link laughed and urged her toward it. She complied, and the duo raced toward the enemy.

As they passed it, Link brought his sword around, cutting the Poe in two. He watched as it made a strange noise and faded from existence. Link laughed, looking around for more, the exhilaration of the ride mingling with the adrenaline rush that always came when his sword was drawn.

Soon enough, he found them. As Link and Epona darted across the Field, the wind at their backs, pushing them forward, Link sliced through several more Poes. After the last one, Link felt Epona slow, barely. He directed her mad charge toward the grove of trees near the Kokiri Forest.

Epona slowed to a trot as they entered the trees. Link dismounted and led the weary Epona to the secret spring that only the Kokiri knew of, save maybe for the Zora. As they walked through the aged trees, Link heard a sound carried on the slight breeze that whistled through the leaves of the tree, wrapping itself in the mystery of the hidden neverland.

Link stopped at the small crystal spring that bubbled from the ground. He refilled his water bottle and let Epona have her fill of the cool, refreshing spring water. Hearing the mysterious sound echo around the silent forest, he looked to find the source. He unhooked his sword sheath from Epona's saddle and strapped it back into its place on his belt. Whispering to Epona to stay here, he crept into the main part of the forest, following the sound.

Link soon was lost in the forest, as was usual. Rarely did he choose to navigate through the area known as the Lost Woods for that very reason. As he followed the sound through twist and turn, he was reminded of a very similar time in which he had done the same.

_Link walked into the area known as the Lost Woods. In constant fear of some beast or monster to pop up, he kept his sword drawn. He soon found himself lost, but somehow, he knew it was alright. He heard a strange but familiar tune echo around him. He followed the sound, avoiding the Skull Kids and other inhabitants of the forest. He saw a small spring, but it wasn't like any other spring he had ever seen. The water was crystal clear and very deep, deeper than he could dive. At the very bottom, he thought he saw movement, but he banished the thought before it spooked him. He pressed onward and found himself in front of a large maze. Avoiding the Mad Scrubs, he navigated the maze and found the source of the music: Saria sitting on a tree stump._

Link looked around and recognized the place from the memory. He must've navigated it while he remembered it. However, there was no music, just the almost silent sounds of crying in the middle of the forest. He looked up and once again, saw Saria on the tree stump. Instead of an ocarina, she had her face in her hands. Tears leaked past her fingers, falling onto her skirt.

She looked up and saw Link standing there, sword by his side, a look of confusion on his face. She turned away so he wouldn't see her tears, even if it was too late.

He walked over to her. "Saria? What's wrong?"

"I-I can't tell you..."

"You're my best friend. For a long time, you were my only friend. If there's something wrong, please, tell me."

"You want to know what's wrong? Fine." She turned to look directly at him. Tears still streaked down her face, but instead of sadness in her eyes, it was anger. "_You_ are what's wrong!"

"Huh? Mind running that by me again?"

"You! It's you that's wrong! All our lives it was me and you this, me and you that, it was rarely me this and never you that. For ten years we lived side by side, played side by side, even ate side by side! Then you have to off and go ride into the distance with Navi and Zelda and defeat Ganon! And here I was, back here, longing for you to return, still clinging to those years we had. You leave and grow up, while I'm still here, frozen in time. I... I _loved_ you, Link... And you left, forever leaving me behind..."

The anger that she had scraped together had vanished completely, letting the heartache fill the void. She broke into tears again, unsuccessfully trying to hold them back.

"I-I never knew... If I had known... I-I'm sorry..."

"No, Link, there's no reason for you to be sorry. You didn't know because I never told you, I never hinted at it. We were only ten, after all, not quite old enough to fully understand, to fully word our feelings. I only now know how to word mine. I also know now that it never could have been. You would have grown as you have here, while I continued to be this age forever. You wouldn't have belonged. I wouldn't have fit..."

"Fit? Fit what?"

"It's not a what, Link, it's a where. I wouldn't have fit in your life. You would grow, each year becoming older and older, while each year I'd stay the same. I'd be holding you back. You would always wonder what lies beyond the forest while I wonder if it was right to keep you here. I wouldn't be able to give you a life, Link, at least, not one you deserve."

"And what kind of life is that?"

"One where you can be happy. Truly happy. Link, as much as it pains me to say this, I've been left behind. I still remember the joy of being your age before the curse was broken, but this is my niche now. I am to stay here and watch after the Kokiri. Nothing can change that."

Link sighed as he saw by the look in her face that she was done, out of things to say. He looked down and their eyes met. "Saria, once, before I left, before I knew I was going to grow up, I loved you, too." He turned and walked back into the maze and into the Lost Woods.

Saria nodded, the tears threatening to return. "But it could never be... Not while I'm a Kokiri..."


	33. Sarah's Return

**A/N: And the third!

* * *

**

Chapter Thirty-Three - Sarah's Return

In the rumbling depths of Death Mountain, in the great Goron City, sat one of the hundreds of Goron that had recently relocated to their stronghold. He was an average Goron, almost unrecognizable. He rolled slowly by one of the many tunnels that led away from the City, stopping right before passing it. Deep in the path, echoes could be faintly heard, echoes that sounded like crying. Looking around, the Goron rolled down the tunnel to the source.

The Goron erupted out the other side. Looking around the trees, he headed along the recently disturbed undergrowth, arriving quickly at a small clearing. Before him sat a small child on a tree stump, crying. He walked up to the child, who looked up at him.

"What is wrong, goro?"

She sighed. "Nothing you would understand..."

"You'd be surprised, goro. I'm a pretty smart Goron, you know, goro. You can tell Goro, goro."

"I'm faced with a wish that I've wished that can't be granted by anyone here."

"I don't know about here, goro, but on the mountain there's a magic woman who grants wishes."

She seemed to perk up. "Really? Can you take me to her?"

"Sure, goro." The girl stood as the Goron started along the path back to the tunnel, which took them back to the City. He led her out and up the mountain, taking several secret shortcuts that only the Gorons knew of.

He led her to a small entrance next to the main area. Ducking inside, he watched as the sparkling room lit up. He nudged the girl forward, and she complied.

From the pool of water there was a shout and a woman burst from the water. She turned to the girl and smiled.

"Ah, Saria. Welcome to the Death Mountain Fairy Fountain. What can I help you with?"

"Can you change me back?"

"Back to what, my dear?"

"Back to who I was before the curse was broken."

The Great Fairy nodded. "I can. However, I am hesitant to do so. Do you understand what you'd be giving up? You'd lose your immortality; you would grow old just like the normal Hylians. The closeness with the forest that you have now would be gone. You would, in effect, be exactly like you were before the curse was removed. Nothing would be unchanged."

"I understand."

"And you are still willing?"

"Yes. If you can do it, do so. Please."

"Why do you wish this?"

She thought for a second, but only a second. "I want a second chance, one I could not have as a Kokiri."

"Very well." The Great Fairy nodded and spun her magic around Saria.

>>

Link stood next to a chair in his house in Kakariko. Epona was resting at the Ranch and Link had decided to take a break for a bit before starting off toward the castle. Suddenly, there was an unexpected knock on his door. Link shouted for whoever it was at the door to come on in. He sat down as the door swung open, causing Link to spring back up.

On his doorstep stood a woman that seemed to be about the same age as Link. She had long auburn hair that fell gracefully around her shoulders. She wore a plain white blouse and khaki pants. Her piercing emerald eyes scanned the room quickly before settling on Link. She slowly walked toward the stunned Link. Something was familiar about the way she walked, the way she looked, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

She took Link's hands in hers. "Link, it's been a long time..."

"Long time?"

The look in her eye instantly became one of sadness. "Don't you remember me?"

"Not that I can remember. I'm terribly sorry."

She sighed. "I'm not surprised. Every day that passes leaves me another day away. But still, I was your friend, your best friend, for so long..."

Something clicked inside Link as a wave of memories flooded him. "S-Sarah?"

She smiled, the sadness in her eyes vanishing. "Yes, Link, it's me."

Link stared in amazement. "But I thought... and you were... and... You know what? Rational thought has never been my strong suit."

She laughed, a laugh that echoed through Link, reminding him of the long days they had spent working, eating, swimming, doing nothing at all, all the while she talked and listened and made jokes and laughed. "There's no rational thought with it. I'm just back, one hundred percent."

Link let the realization sink in. Before him stood not Saria, the ageless ten year old, but Sarah, seventeen year old from before the curse was broken.

"How?"

"I don't know the technicalities. That wasn't what I worried about. Link, I'm back. I'm normal again."

"Why, though? I thought you enjoyed being a Kokiri."

"Sort of. The immortality bit was fun, but I'm glad I did what I did. And as for why, I did it for you."

"F-for me?"

She nodded. "Yes. I don't want to be left behind again while you gallop off into the sunset."

>>

Zelda paced back and forth across the main hall of the castle. _Link should be back by now. Even if Epona freaked out, it wouldn't take Link this long to calm her down. Maybe I should go look for him..._

As if on cue, Link ran into the castle. She was extremely happy that he was okay, but she stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the person he was pulling along behind him. _No! I waited too long! He's gone and dug someone out of the Market!_ She braced herself for what would come next.

The woman stopped in front of Zelda. "Zelda, so good to see you."

Zelda, from her royal training, instantly recognized the situation as one she had gone to great lengths to avoid. Here stood someone she was supposed to know but didn't. "And you as well."

"So, how's everything running?"

"Eh, pretty good. It' a lot harder running a country than I thought."

"I'm sure. Never looked too easy to begin with. Hey, can I ask a favor of you?"

"Sure. What do you need?"

"Mind if I stay here for a while? Gotta relocate soon enough."

"Sure, no problem."

"Thanks a ton. I'll owe you one, that's for sure."

"Anything else?"

"No. that's about it. Link, mind showing the way?"

Link shrugged. "No prob."

Zelda watched as Link led her down the hall. When they had vanished around the corner, she collapsed back on one of the chairs. "You were right..."

Impa nodded. "It seems so, however much I feel there's something here that belies the truth."

"I was so close... If Epona hadn't decided to act up, everything would have been okay..."

Impa walked over to Zelda. "Sometimes the battle least wanted is the battle most won."

"What?"

"Um, I'm actually not fully clear on that one. My mother used to say it in times like these, so I assume it has something to do with it."

Zelda nodded. "Well, thanks for the support, anyway." She stood and looked at Impa sadly. "But I let Link fall through. Why..? Why, Impa..?" The tears flowed freely as Impa tried to console Zelda. "I let him go by..."

--

"She doesn't realize that it's me."

"Well, I hardly believed it was you."

"I can't wait to see the look on her face when she figures it out." Sarah laughed as she collapsed back on the large bed. "I never realized how big these beds really are."

Link nodded. "I know. I'm still working on how much she has in that treasury."

Sarah brought her legs together in front of her and kicked out, the momentum throwing her up off the bed and onto the ground. "Man, it's been _forever_ since I could do that!"

Link, who had drawn his sword, watched her antics while practicing a few swings. Suddenly, from out of nowhere Link could see, Sarah produced a long and particularly hard stick that she brandished at Link.

"Avast, ye knave!" she shouted, attempting to poke Link.

"Um, 'avast' is a few centuries forward, you know. Besides, _you _must be the knave if you think you can beat me!" He sheathed his sword and pulled out an identical stick. "Face the wrath of the Deku Baba!" he exclaimed, lunging forward.

She spun her stick around, knocking Link's off its path. "It's a stick, not a sword. Learn to use it as such." She twirled the stick in the air then grabbed it and brought it down on Link's head.

He pulled back and grinned. "Perfect! A new weapon I can learn!"

"Oh joy. What fate has befallen this poor country now that he's discovered staffs?"

"Your fault. All your fault. Just like the massive invasion by the Killer Wafers from Outer Space!"

Sarah laughed. "Now _that_ was your fault. You had them attack me, after all. Now, as to right now, if I beat you, you'll not lay waste to Hyrule?"

"You couldn't beat me if you tried." He fended off a few attacks and lunged. He saw her spin her stick around, trying to block his attack, but he shifted the lunge into a block and their sticks slammed into each other. Link laughed once more and brought his stick up, throwing Sarah off balance. He took the moment to poke her in the stomach twice with the end of the stick. She just stared at him and in response, he poked her a few more times.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"Stabbing you mercilessly," he replied, gently poking her once more.

"Okay... Well, you know what I have to say about that?"

"What?"

"Nothing. But... I do have something to do about it." She dropped her stick, grabbed his, tossed it away and jumped on him. The sudden introduction of her to his body threw him off balance and crashing to the floor. Link rolled over, causing her to slide to his left. She growled and jumped back on top of him. "You can't beat me! I am invincible!"

"Oh yeah?" Link asked, pushing her off again. "You forget, I have thousands of tricks up my sleeve. Of course, about a third are dirty tricks only to be used in the most extreme cases and another third would cause some sort of injury, so..."

"So, you're left with only a third of your arsenal, left prey to the tricks up _my_ sleeve."

"Your sleeves are pretty small, though," Link noted. "I can't think of anything devastating that you could pull out of one."

She chuckled. "That's because your mind cannot comprehend the full range of my abilities. You underestimate me, Link, and you know what happens when you underestimate me," she said, circling around him.

"Oh really? And what is that?"

She leaped forward onto him, wrapping her arms and legs around him. Link stumbled forward but managed to remain standing.

"Fear my ReDead Wrap!" she shouted, tightening her grip.

--

"And not only did he find her unnaturally fast, I recognize her! I have no idea from where, but I know her!"

"Maybe you saw her in the Market once."

"No, I know that's not it. I don't know. I'll just ask her."

"Sounds like a good course of action."

Zelda stood up. "Then I shall go do so." She marched down the hallway, waving goodbye to Impa. She quickly located the proper door.

Link growled as he tried to pry her legs apart. "You know, even a ReDead would have let go by now."

"Well, you see," she replied, refusing to let go, "I'm not a ReDead, now am I?"

"No, or else I would be free already!" An idea sprung to his mind. He waited a second until she loosened her grip for just a second and spun around, coming face to face with her as he wrapped his arms around her to steady her so he wouldn't fall. As he did so, the door opened and Zelda poked her head in. Seeing the two, she quickly removed her head and ran back down the hall. Link let go of Sarah.

"Hmm. Wonder what's up with her?"

"No idea. Now, let go of me already!"

--

Zelda burst back into the room where Impa was, causing Impa to jerk up from her chair.

"What happened?"

"I go in there and they're all wrapped up on each other like two gummi worms in the middle of summer!"

"I don't quite know what a 'gummi worm' is, but I think I get the analogy. Next time, it might be smart to knock first, though."

"That's not what's bothering me. Until then, there was always the possibility that she was just a friend he had that needed a place to stay. Now, though, I'd hate to know exactly how 'friendly' they are."

"Could it be a big misunderstanding? Those seem pretty popular when it comes to the Hero of Time."

"Well, it could be, but it's unlikely. I mean, well, you didn't see them! I'll never get that image out of my mind..."

"You do not know how much it pains me to see you like this. Already, I'm tempted to go in there and pound it into his skull for a bit."

"No, that won't be necessary. I'll see what I can figure out."

--

Sarah stared at Link. "Well, now what are you going to do? You've got me in a pretty compromising position here, you know."

Link laughed. It was true. He hadn't considered what he would end up with when he twisted around. Her arms were around his neck; her legs were wrapped around his waist. "Your ReDead Wrap seems to have backfired."

"Oh? And why is that?"

He leaned forward a tiny bit. "Tell me, what would happen if I, say, happened to fall forward?"

"Then I would be crushed under your colossal weight."

"Hey! Take that back!"

"Never!"

"Alright, you asked for it..." He let himself start to fall to the ground but before they landed, she jerked around and he spun around, landing on his back. She unwrapped herself from him and propped herself up on him.

"You know, it's been a while since I stood a match against you."

"It's good to have you back, that's for sure."

"It's good to _be_ back." She laughed. "You know, you're pretty comfy."

"Why thank you."

She rolled over off of Link, stopping beside him. "It's been too long since we last did something like that."

"I know. It's been a long while since we've done very much at all."

"Yeah. Well, I have returned, so we can hang out a lot more, like we used to."

"Yeah, like we used to..."

* * *

**A/N: Enough of a plot twist for ya? Well, you'll have to wait for the next chapter, so... See ya then!**


	34. Zelda's Realization

**A/N: Yay! The return of a reviewer! Has large party in celebration Now I feel I've left out the loyal reviewers... Throws equally large party in celebration There! Now, as much as it pains me to say this, this story is quickly approaching what I plan to have as the end. However, there are still several fun chapters ahead, especially a few fans who agree with me on Link pairings... Hehehe, that's all you'll pry from me! Now, be ready for a few events to roll around. Read! Now!**

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**Chapter Thirty-Four - Zelda's Realization**

"And then do you know what he said? He said that he'd be happy to take it off my hands."

Link and Zelda laughed. "You gotta be kidding me!" Link exclaimed.

Sarah, who had just shoved a large chunk of chicken in her mouth, nodded vigorously.

"In my life, I never thought I'd run into someone who could eat as much as Link could," Zelda commented, leaning back in her chair.

Sarah swallowed and stuck her tongue out at Zelda. "Good digestion."

"What's digestion got to do with it? I'm just hungry."

Zelda rolled her eyes. "Link, what are we going to do with you?"

"Feed him to the fishes!" Sarah shouted.

"Hey! Watch it! I've had enough fish for a lifetime."

"Oh? And how is that?"

Link stood, pulling something from his bag. He tossed it to Sarah, who caught it.

"Interesting craftsmanship, nice painting, good quality. Zora made?"

Link laughed as she handed the Zora Mask back. "You could say that..."

"What else could I say?"

"I don't know, I just wanted to say that."

Sarah laughed. "So, then, what's for dessert?"

"You just ate the equivalent of three chickens! You're still hungry?"

"Well, so am I."

Zelda stood. "You two are insatiable. I'll go figure something out."

"I have an idea..."

Zelda turned to Link. "And that would be..?"

"Marshmallows!" he shouted, banging his fist on the table. "We must have marshmallows!"

Zelda and Sarah laughed. "Yes, Link, I will go fetch marshmallows."

"Better than chips, hmm?" Sarah asked, causing Zelda to stop for a second.

_"Chips? You bring chips? Of all the things in the world, why chips?"_

_He ripped open the bag. "We were out of marshmallows."_

_But how would anyone know about that chip incident? I haven't told anyone anything about during the curse and neither has Link. Wait... No, it can't be..._

"Zellie? You still with us?" Link asked.

Zelda nodded. "Yeah. Sorry, a little memory lapse."

"Ah, okay."

"Well, I shall return with your precious marshmallows." Zelda walked into the kitchens and weaved her way to the large pantry. She dug out the required marshmallows, and then stopped. Returning quickly to the dining room, she looked at Sarah for a moment.

"What did you say your name was?"

"I didn't," she responded. "I have a lot of names, but the one that I use now... is Sarah."

"Okay." Zelda sat down and tossed the marshmallow bag at Link's head. He caught it and tore into it. "Mind giving a small explanation?"

"Well, I wanted to be back, so I went and did so."

"Mind excusing me?" Link asked. "Gonna go find a good stick and a fire."

Zelda laughed and nodded. "Alright. See ya later."

He stood, calmly pushed his chair in, and bolted from the room. Zelda turned back to Sarah.

"Why?"

"Because I didn't want to stand in that forest and watch Link slip away again. He and I used to be so close, both before and during the curse. I don't want to lose it like I did before the curse."

"And your crush on him has nothing to do with it, does it?" Zelda asked, sarcasm seeping into her voice.

"Of course it does! I realized that both before and after the curse that I had fallen for Link, and I had fallen hard. The only difference is that during the curse, I could have acted on it. I'm sure you know quite well what I mean when I say that I wish I had back then."

Zelda nodded. "But what happened to you being supportive of me and him?"

"I only became okay with that when I found out that I was becoming a Kokiri. I couldn't be with Link if I was a Kokiri. I mean, come on, I was gonna stay ten forever, so that really wouldn't work out too well. However, now that I have a decent body back, I'm starting to see the whole Link situation in a new light. Not that I have any grudges against the Kokiri, it's just that I wasn't in total agreement with the limitations."

"And so you went and found a way to get your old self back just so you could try to win over Link?"

"Yes, although I don't know how lightly 'win over' should be used. I don't see the difficulty in it, not that I'm saying Link's easy to get."

"I have a good feeling you're going to have your hands full."

"Oh? And why is that?"

"Sarah, Link told me that he loves me."

Sarah stopped, but only for a second. "Well, from what I can tell, you've done nothing about it. Figure this a healthy rivalry." She stood and walked out, leaving Zelda at the large table.

"Fear the wrath of the Marshmallow of Fire!" Link shouted, waving a flaming marshmallow around. Sarah laughed as it launched off the stick and landed with a splat on the ground.

"Yes, I fear the wrath of the splatted Marshmallow of Fire."

Link growled and stabbed another marshmallow. Sarah removed hers from the small fire that they had built. She looked at it for a second, and then gulped it down. She placed another one on the Deku Stick and held it over the fire.

"Here's a question for you. If these Deku Sticks are so flammable, then why aren't they catching fire?"

Sarah laughed as Link's stick suddenly flared up, flames rising fast. He dropped the stick suddenly as the fire consumed it.

"Here." She tossed him another one. "Enjoy."

Link put another marshmallow on his stick and propped it up over the fire. "So, what was the deal with Zelda in there?"

"She and I weren't exactly seeing eye to eye."

"Over what?"

"Don't worry about it. By the way, your marshmallow's on fire again."

Link growled as he grabbed the stick and flung the marshmallow off, watching it sail away across Hyrule Field. He stabbed another one, but Sarah grabbed his stick from him.

"Here, let me do it." She replaced the marshmallow and handed him her stick, which had a perfectly roasted marshmallow on it.

"Eternally grateful," he chimed, removing the marshmallow from the stick and shoving it in his mouth.

"You're going to choke one day if you keep doing that."

"You did the same thing!"

"My throat's bigger. I won't choke as easily."

"Nuh-uh!"

"Uh huh!"

"Your throat can't be bigger!"

"It's a scientific fact. I'm older, and so my throat's bigger."

"No way!"

"Yes way!"

Link jumped up, pulling his current stick from the fire. "I say no!"

Sarah tipped her current stick into the fire, lighting the marshmallow. "I say yes!"

The next few minutes were a sight to behold. They fought, flames and marshmallow goop flying everywhere. Neither would give in, instead pressing the fight on the opposing side. After several smashes of stick on stick, Sarah tossed hers into the fire.

"What was that for?" As he spoke, his stick burnt through, causing him to pull back. "Oh."

Sarah laughed as she watched Link grab a marshmallow from the bag and stuff it in his mouth.

"You know," Sarah said after a minute, "the sun seems to go down a lot faster."

"It's where you're used to the forest perspective. You're not used to outside life anymore."

"Well, I hope to remedy that."

Link watched as two Stalchildren rose from the ground, encircling him. "You might want to get packed." He drew his sword and beheaded the first Stalchild. With one more stroke the Stalchild vanished. He turned to face the other, but he saw Sarah smashing its head in with a flaming Deku Stick. It caught fire and crumbled under her smashing.

Link laughed as she put the stick out. "Good job. Now, shall we retire from this field?"

She nodded. "Good idea."

Link and Sarah had wound their way to his room. He sat on the bed, watching her walk around his room, examining the several gadgets strewn everywhere.

Link flopped back on the bed. "Marshmallows are good."

Sarah nodded, sitting down on the other side of the bed, turning to Link. "Yup. You know, you probably could do with at least one chair in here."

"Nah, wastes space."

She shrugged. "Whatever. Why did we run all the way here?"

"We didn't run, we _raced_ all the way here."

"Ah. Why did we _race_ all the way here?"

"Because I wanted to wear you out."

"Well, you managed to do that, that's for sure. Why did you want to wear me out? Were you planning something?"

"No, I just wanted to."

"Oh, okay." She yawned and propped herself against the headboard.

"Sleepy?"

"I thought we just agreed on that," Sarah said. Link shrugged.

There was a knock on the door, which startled Link. "Hey, think you can go get the door?"

Sarah sighed. "Lazy." She got up and walked to the door. She opened it a bit and saw Zelda standing there. "Oh, hey."

Zelda glanced at the disheveled look that Sarah presented. "I'm not, um, interrupting anything am I?"

Sarah laughed. "No worries. Come in?" she asked, opening the door wider.

As Zelda walked in, Link turned and sat up. "Hey, Zellie."

"Hey, Link. Tired, are we?"

"Yeah, I admit it. Takes a stomach full of goop and a nice run to do it, but yeah. So, how are you?"

"Eh, I'm alright. Gets boring over here with you two gone."

"Oh, trust me, it's not going to be boring for too much longer," a voice replied.

Link sighed. "Here we go again." He stood up and grabbed his sword from the table as Dark Link stepped down from the windowsill.

"What, not going to say hello? How rude."

"You've tried on more than one occasion to kill me and you call _me_ rude?"

Dark Link shrugged. "Hmm. And who's this lovely young lady?"

Sarah stared at him. "Oh, so now that Link messed up your kidnapping plans, you've decided to try and be nice?"

"Saria, then. I see you've changed a bit. In a good way, don't get me wrong there. Now I'm wishing I'd waited a day or two to nab you."

Sarah didn't say a word, instead opting to turn around and walk away. Dark Link's hand shot out and grabbed her arm, pulling her back.

"Now hold on just a minute! I wasn't done taun-" Dark Link was interrupted by her fist connecting with his face. He laughed and wiped a bit of the dark blood from his nose. "It seems you pack a punch."

"And don't forget it."

Dark Link turned and walked back to the windowsill. "You know, I have a strange feeling that none of you guys like me very much."

"Hmm, I wonder where you got that idea," Link replied. "Now, what do you want?"

"Oh, lots of things. Fire, death, destruction, a touch of horror here and there, the usual."

"What do you want _now_?"

"Oh! You should be a little more specific next time. I just thought I'd drop by and see what's going on with my favorite enemy."

"Well, I _was_ thinking of going to sleep for a bit, but then you showed up."

Dark Link laughed. "Well, you might want to rethink that a bit. You see, I have a small bit of business to take care of and I might need the Queen's help..."

"You better not touch her!"

"Oh, but I'd need to. Touching is a major requirement..."

Link chose not to listen to him anymore. He took his sword and lunged at the shadow, who laughed and jumped back onto the windowsill.

"I seem to have struck _another_ nerve. Well, on that foot, I shall take my leave. See you soon, Zelda." He stepped back and vanished.

Link sheathed his sword. "If there is anything that deserves to be tied up and dropped to the bottom of the ocean, it'd be him."

"I'm in agreement there."

"You don't really think he'd come after me, do you?"

"I wouldn't put it past him."

"So, what are we going to do about it?"

"You two should get your rest. I'll watch and make sure he doesn't pay us a visit anytime soon," Link replied.

"Oh? And what happens when you collapse from exhaustion and he sneaks in, hmm? I don't like that idea. Any others?"

"Well," Link said after a second, "we could always run shifts. One of us stays awake making sure he doesn't come while the other two sleep. Then we can switch out."

"Well, we'll need a good protected room. Preferably with two beds," Sarah commented, not liking the idea of her shift where Link and Zelda would be asleep together.

"Agreed," Zelda said, not liking the idea of Link and Sarah sharing a bed.

Link shrugged. "Ok, whatever. I'll take first shift and you two get your sleep, okay? I'll wake one of you in a bit."

He followed them to the room that Zelda had thought of and sat down in the chair, watching them fall asleep strangely fast.

_You better not show your shadowed face around here. I don't plan on losing Zelda to you. I'll sit here all night if I have to; I'm not letting you get her._


	35. Just Like Him

**A/N: And the next one!**

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**Chapter Thirty-Five - Just Like Him**

Sarah yawned and sat up. Opening her eyes, she winced as the sunlight became painfully obvious. She got up and looked around. She took a second to get her bearings, and only after that did she realize what was wrong. It was morning, Link was fast asleep in the chair, and Zelda's bed was empty.

It took her only a second to connect the dots. Forgetting her fight with Zelda, she rushed over to Link. After trying every way she could think of to wake him, she just shoved the chair over. He collapsed in a heap of chair and person.

After taking a few seconds to untangle himself from the toppled chair, he looked around.

"She's gone!" Sarah shouted.

"Wh-what?"

"Zelda is gone! You fell asleep."

He yawned. "No, I was up until sunup, which couldn't have been too long ago... Wait, he really got her? How? When?"

"I don't know! I just woke up half a second ago to find her gone and you asleep."

"Oh great..." Link grabbed his sword and ran out the door.

--

Zelda awoke only to find herself in a pitch black room. Standing, she started to walk forward, only to find that some sort of bars blocked her way.

A light was lit as Dark Link walked into the room. "The Queen of Hyrule, trapped like a caged rat." He walked up to the cage where Zelda was and laughed. "Your hero's still recovering. In about eight or nine hours he will awake only to find you gone."

"What do you want with me?" she demanded.

"Nothing at all, actually. I could care less about you. It's the fact that my counterpart takes so much interest in you that interests me."

"You're a twisted person, you know that?"

"Why thank you. I'm glad to hear that you noticed. Either way, you've got about six hours to sit here before I return."

"Just get it over with. I'd rather die now than wait six hours."

"Die? Who said you were going to die in six hours? Oh no, no, no, no, no. I have something _much_ better planned for you."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You'll see in about six hours," Dark Link responded as he left the room, extinguishing the light.

Zelda sat down on the floor. She was trapped in a cage, being held hostage in a place she didn't recognize, Link was nowhere to be found, and Dark Link was planning something. That last thought made her shudder. Whatever he had in mind, she knew for a fact that she wasn't going to enjoy it. With nothing better to do, she laid back on the crude mat and tried to go to sleep.

-

Zelda was jostled awake only to find Dark Link standing over her. She jumped up and backed away from him.

"Good evening, my Queen. Glad to see you awake."

"What time is it?"

"Oh, probably around noonish."

"You won't get away with whatever it is you're planning, you know."

"Oh really?" Dark Link smirked at Zelda, as if he knew a big secret. "And why is that?"

"Link will stop you."

"Oh please. He was up until six this morning. He won't even wake up until two. By the time he gets here, I'll be through with you."

"Through... with me...?"

"You heard me. What I have planned won't take much more than an hour or two, if that."

"What exactly do you have planned?"

"Oh, let's not ruin the surprise, shall we? Come along, then." Dark Link opened the door to the cage and stepped out.

"And what makes you think I'm going to come with you?"

"Simple: I don't care. You're welcome to stay in there, but I figure you'd be hungry, so I was going to feed you first. However, if you'd rather stay in here..."

"I'll come," she said, hunger overpowering reason.

"Good." Dark Link led Zelda out of the room and into another, where a table full of food was placed. Having not eaten since the day before, Zelda rushed to the table and ate like she'd never eat again, which was still entirely possible.

"Don't eat too much, now. We don't want your stomach to start hurting later, now do we?"

Zelda completely ignored him and continued eating, her royal instincts managing to slow her down. After eating as much as she could, she leaned back in a chair.

"Relax for a few moments. I'd rather not have you puke on me."

"Don't tempt me."

Dark Link smiled. "Already sounding evil. I think I'm rubbing off on you."

"I don't want anything rubbing off on me, got it?"

"Feisty little queen, aren't we?"

"Better than dead shadow."

"You're lucky my job doesn't include killing you, you know."

"Your job?" Zelda asked, curious.

"Yeah."

"What job?"

"You're stalling, aren't you?"

"Yup."

"Very well. I might as well indulge this one tidbit to you. I work for Ganon, which you already know. He told me to distract Link for a while. Seeing as how I despise that brat, I happily obliged. The only rule is that the only person I can kill is Link."

"Why, then, do you go through all this kidnapping and such? Would it not make much more sense just to lob his head off?"

"It _does_ seem I'm rubbing off on you. However evil and twisted I may be, I still have a bit of honor left. Attacking the wounded is just plain wrong on either side of the fence."

"So, kidnapping is honorable, now?"

"Well, no, but that's not _that_ dishonorable. I'm feeding you, answering your questions, even letting you live. All in all, I figure I'm being pretty nice, considering that I did kidnap you."

"You're only doing it to annoy me."

"That might be so. However, in the scope of things, does it really matter?"

Zelda stood. "Of course it does! It's like dangling a mouse in front of a cat! It's torture, plain and simple."

Dark Link laughed. "So, you're a mouse now? I must have missed the change." He walked closer to her, causing Zelda to back up against the wall. "You know, for a light-dweller, you're not half bad looking. I think I see what Link sees in you." He placed his hand on her cheek.

Suddenly, Zelda drew Dark Link's sword and ran him through with it. "Don't you EVER touch me!"

Dark Link dropped to his knees, and then removed the sword, sliding it back in its sheath. As Zelda ran out of the room, he stood. "Heh. This is going to be interesting."

Zelda turned right after leaving the room and found herself in a living room of sorts. Suddenly, Dark Link appeared behind her and shoved her to the ground.

"Here I was being nice and polite and you shishkabob me with my own sword!" He watched as she spun around and scrambled back against a wall. "Well, now I'm done being nice. I've always hated it anyway. You're going to regret doing that with every fiber of your being." He walked toward her as she tried to hide behind whatever she could. Finally catching up to her, he grabbed her arm and hauled her to her feet. Dragging her toward the hallway, he stopped and spun around as a crash echoed through the house.

In the doorway stood Link, his sword drawn. He seemed much taller, but it was just the way the light was. Either way, Zelda couldn't help but to stare at him. Even the way he stood seemed to announce 'hero.'

"Let her go!" he shouted.

Dark Link released Zelda, who ran over to Link. "Well then, this is unexpected. You're early."

"No, I'm late." He turned to Zelda. "Are you okay?"

"I-I'm fine."

"What did he do to you?"

"N-nothing, yet. Perfect timing, by the way."

"Alright, reunion over. Zelda's my hostage, and I'd like her back. We have some unfinished business that needs taken care of."

Link walked to the center of the room. "You honestly think I'm just gonna hand her over?"

"No, but I thought I'd try at least. And for the record, I've been pretty nice to her, up until she stabbed me. The only injuries she should have are a few bruises and painful hands from grabbing my sword."

"That merits me running you through, you know."

"I've already been run through once today. Could we be creative, please?"

"I could always lob your head off."

"There we go! Creative! Well, it's a start at least. You and her think a lot alike, you know."

"Huh?"

"Never mind." Dark Link readied his sword. "You do remember what happened last time we fought, yes?"

"How could I forget?"

"What's he talking about?"

"Oh ho! She doesn't know! This is a twist. You see, last time we fought, I killed him. Gut stab, actually."

"He... what?"

"Plus, while he's been recovering, I've gotten better. I assume you've not trained at all?"

"Actually, no, I haven't. Does it matter?"

"Well, I figured you'd rather not let her see you die by my hand."

"You won't kill me."

"You sound so confident."

"You forgot one thing."

"And what's that, Hero of Time?"

"I am stronger than you."

"And how do you figure that?"

"Each and every time you've tried to hurt me or my friends, I win. You see, the difference between you and me is that you fight just to make me mad, yet I fight for a reason. I fight to protect my friends, I fight to protect Hyrule, and most of all, and this is the main reason why you won't win, I fight to protect Zelda!" he shouted, bringing his sword up then down to smash into Dark Link. Caught unawares, the Master Sword sliced deep into Dark Link's arm. He grunted and backed up, only to be attacked again by Link.

Dark Link had never seen him fight like this. He was borderline reckless, but each attack, each step, even each breath was precise. Link was using every tactical advantage he had, and unfortunately for Dark Link, he had a ton.

Link slammed the flat of his sword against Dark Link's sword, letting it bounce off. He brought it around, cutting through the air and finally coming into contact with Dark Link. He followed through with several more twists and turns that left Dark Link wishing that he hadn't got on Link's really bad side. Dark Link could see the anger in Link's eyes during every swing, every block. Dark Link had brought Link's wrath upon him, and he was really regretting it.

Zelda watched as Link drove Dark Link back against the wall. Something was different about Dark Link; each attack seemed to do more damage, each cut seemed to be real instead of his usual ethereal cuts. Dark Link was obviously stuck on the defensive, and Link didn't look like he was giving Dark Link any room to make mistakes.

And indeed he wasn't. Dark Link brought his sword to strike back at Link, but instead of Link jumping into defending himself, he turned the attack against the attacker. Sidestepping the attack, Link swiped his sword around and watched as it sliced through Dark Link. Not giving him a chance to recuperate, Link attacked several more times, incorporating several fancy sword tosses. Dark Link took every single blow and, as a result, collapsed onto the floor. Link brought his sword once again to Dark Link's throat, but instead of the middle, he placed it slightly to the left.

"Not so tough now, are we?"

"How? How are you doing this?" Dark Link asked.

"I told you, I am stronger than you."

"We are of equal strength."

"No. You fight for evil, for destruction. I fight for justice and light. So long as you fight with malice in your heart, love will always overpower you!"

"Well, I wonder how full of malice you are right now, hmm?"

"Shut up!" Link shouted, bringing his sword up. He swung it down, intending on cutting his adversary in two, but he heard Zelda's voice echo in the small house.

"Link, no!"

He stopped. "No? Why should I stop? He's tried to kill me. He's even kidnapped you! That's going too far. This _shadow_ deserves every bit of pain I can inflict on him!"

"I know, but if you keep this up, you'll just be like him."

He seemed to calm, but only a little. He let his sword drift back to his side and walked over to Zelda.

"Well, you know what? You two go have fun. She doesn't seem that exciting anyways," Dark Link said, rising to his feet.

Within seconds, Link had unsheathed his blade. "You do not talk about Zelda like that!" he shouted, sending his sword smashing into the ground. The force of the blow split the wooden boards along the line where they were nailed together, sending Dark Link falling into the basement. Link turned and walked to Zelda.

"Come on. Let's go before he regains consciousness."

Surprised at how fast the wrath he had just released vanished when he spoke to her, she silently nodded and followed her rescuer.


	36. The Final Decision

**A/N: Chapter Twenty-Six, the impeccably strange-written chapter that will have all readers making their trademark high pitched noises of joy! This chapter is the resolution of the Zelda/Link/Sarah problem. Read! Now! Why are you still reading this!

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**

Chapter Twenty-Six - The Final Decision

_'I fight to protect my friends, I fight to protect Hyrule, and most of all, and this is the main reason why you won't win, I fight to protect Zelda!'_

Link's words echoed through Sarah's head. She had followed him just in case he needed help, but had chosen to stay outside.

"Could he... really still love Zelda even though she never said anything... and even though I'm back like this..? Maybe... maybe Zelda was right..."

She sighed and sat down on one of the many rolling hills. "But what if he just got caught up in the moment? I mean, if I was fighting to save someone, I'd probably say something like that. So does that really prove anything at all?"

Thinking, she fell back against the grass. "But then again, I saw what he did. He was mad, way worse than when Dark Link came after me. I didn't even know Link had it in him to get like that. Makes me glad I've never gotten on his bad side. And then when he turned back to her, it vanished. Gone in a flash."

She sat up. "Well, girl, you've got two choices: fight for him or let him go. If I fight for him, I'm gonna have to kick it up a notch, but then I risk our friendship if it doesn't work out because I'm gonna have to be blatantly obvious about it. However, if I let him go, then any chance at all is lost. You know what? I think I've decided. I've decided that men are very, very confusing."

Sarah stood and started walking to the castle. It was a short, boring walk, and she arrived quickly. She walked up the stairs silently and found Zelda's giant room. Knocking at the door, she opened it a bit.

"Oh, Sarah. Come in," Zelda said. Sarah did just that and walked up to Zelda. "Something wrong?"

"I'm... I'm sorry..." she replied.

"Come again?"

"I'm sorry. I've just realized that I was wrong. He loves you, and he always will. I realize now that I can't come between something that strong. I only tried because I thought he was about over you, where you hadn't told him how you felt. I was wrong, though. And for that, I'm sorry."

Zelda nodded. "Thank you. I had hoped that it could be settled peacefully, this fight over Link. I hope that it hasn't hurt our overall friendship."

"I'll get over it. I did once, and I can do it again. I'm gonna go on now, see what I can do with my life in my new body. I want you to go to him. Tell him how you feel. Don't let him hang for any longer."

Zelda nodded once again. "I will. And I won't, you have my word. I should have told him already, but that's behind me. I'll see you later, okay?"

Sarah watched Zelda leave, shutting the door behind her.

Zelda took a right and quickly found Link's door, painted with a vicious green that contrasted extremely bad with the surrounding wall. She eased the door open and walked in.

She found Link asleep on his bed, obviously worn out from Dark Link's 'event.' She decided that when he woke, she'd tell him.

>>

Link struggled to wake up, even though he could use a few hours more sleep. As he woke, he realized that something was off. Not bad off, just off. He rolled over slowly and came face to face with the beautiful Queen of Hyrule. He smiled, settling back in. He might have wanted to wake up, but he was way too comfortable.

>>

Zelda slowly slid back into the real world. Finding the Hero of Time's big, strong arms pulling her close to his sleeping form, she smiled. As she did so, he stirred, waking.

"Good evening," she said as he turned back to her.

"Well, hello there. You're really warm, you know."

She rewrapped her right arm around Link. "So are you."

"Well, I'm glad. I don't want you to get cold."

She ran her hand through his unkempt hair. "You're very handsome when you wake up."

"Well, you're beautiful all the time as it is, so I have to keep up appearances if I'm ever going to catch your eye."

"Speaking of catching my eye, I met this man earlier," Zelda started.

"Oh? Get another visit from a suitor?" Link asked, surprised at the contempt in his voice.

"He's tall, extremely handsome, and an excellent all-around guy."

"Really..?" Link asked, suddenly uninterested.

"Yeah. That and he has a habit of saving my life, you know? I think I've fallen for him, too."

"Oh, really? Tell me more about this man you saw earlier. Did he have a stunning personality? Was his chest rippling with muscles?"

Zelda laughed. "I don't know. He doesn't really take his shirt off too much."

"Well, maybe if you had just asked him, he might have complied."

"Link, you're getting too full of yourself, I think. Your ego's showing."

Link gasped and pulled the cover over his head. He heard Zelda laugh as he poked his head out.

"You're funny."

"Why thank you, milady." He crawled out from under the covers and sat back down.

"You know, Link, I meant what I said a minute ago. I've fallen under the spell of the Hero of Time." She sighed happily, leaning back. "I'm in love..."

"Is that so? Well, what are you going to do about it?" Link asked, but he knew the answer even before he asked. He watched as a mischievous smile popped into existence on Zelda's face. He leaned toward her and their lips touched, at first just a brush against each other, then he seemed to gain the courage that was his trait and he kissed her passionately.

Zelda would have melted in his arms instantly had she not wanted it to continue. It had been so long since that day after she recovered, and Link seemed to realize this, because had she been standing, she wouldn't have been for long. She felt him pull back.

"Wow..."

"You can say that again." Link decided to go for it and kissed her once more. There was just something..._right_ about this feeling he had when he kissed her, and whatever that feeling was, he enjoyed it immensely.

She pulled back and stopped him from kissing her again.

"Is there something wrong?" he asked. "Did I-"

"No, you were wonderful. Trust me on that. It's just that we need to stop, for now, at least."

Link nodded. "Well, thanks. Thanks for telling me."

"Oh, no thanks necessary. I'm _extremely_ glad I did." She stood and walked to the door. "It was nice, er, talking with you."

"The feeling's mutual," Link responded as she shut the door behind her.


	37. Darunia

**A/N: I'm sorry! First, my computer crashes, then when we fix that, wouldn't upload it, then I went through a long bit of writer's block with 38 and 39, and then I tried again, only to find that AOL goes on the fritz! I try it again and not working again. Finally, now it's uploaded! Problem is, Word's not working so I have to proofread it myself, so if there's any errors, I apologize. And now it's not putting in the break things!**

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**Chapter Thirty-Seven - Darunia**

"Ha! What did I tell you? You can't change his fate."

The icy voice replied, "That was just a small attempt. Trust me, when Dark Link finishes up his task, you'll see what we can do."

"Oh," the third voice said happily, "speak of the devil!"

"I see you two are still trapped," Dark Link commented.

"Only because you haven't killed that old man over there."

"Well, it's good to see you as well, Sage."

"I wish I could say the same to you. Not going to off me now are we?"

"Nah, I don't want to risk it. Everything's going so perfectly now."

"Foolish shadow!" the third voice cried. "Kill him and set us free!"

"And why would I kill a fat old man who's imprisoned himself?" Dark Link asked. "Oh no, that wouldn't do. I came here to borrow your magic pool of water." Dark Link walked into the ring of light and to the side of the water. He ran his darkened fingers across the water and it shifted, changing until it showed a castle room, deserted except for a young man rising from the bed. "Perfect..."

Link stood slowly, deciding that it would be better to get out of bed now that he was awake. _Nice wake-up call, though._ He chuckled quietly as he walked over to the mirror, attempting to tame his hair.

_If this is what happens when I save her life, I might need to go and remind her of some of my other adventures with her. On a more serious note, though, I am glad she opened up. Maybe now things'll calm down around here. Maybe now I can stop playing dumb._

Giving up on his hair, he walked over to the solitary table and immediately groaned. "How could I forget about this?" He scooped up the map and rushed out of his room.

"Now, where's Zelda..?" he asked himself as he wandered the corridors.

"Off looking for the Queen?" Impa asked as Link passed by.

He stopped and turned to her. "Yeah. Have you seen her?"

"After a repeat of earlier?"

"Please, explain to me how in the world you know about _everything_ that goes on in this castle?"

"I'm a Sheikah; it's what I do. Now, why are you chasing after her highness?"

Link tossed the map at Impa. "I need to tell her about this. Ganon's amassing a force somewhere and plans to attack sometime soon."

"Well, this is something that I did not know of. Care to explain how you found out about this?"

"I'd rather not say. It'd throw doubt on the truthfulness of it."

Impa nodded. "Well I'm sure Zelda will accept it without a shadow of a doubt. I would appreciate it if you'd let me take it to her."

Link shrugged. "Alright. Tell her I said hi."

Impa nodded. "Okay."

"Oh, and if she asks, tell her I'm on official business and I shall return before nightfall."

--

Zelda ran her finger across the table, tracing the intricate design that the master craftsman had carved into it. As she moved her finger along the pattern, a trickle of water filled the gap. She smiled as the water ended up doubling back on itself.

"My Queen?" Impa asked, watching Zelda play with the table.

"Oh, Impa. Hi," Zelda replied distractedly, not looking up from the table.

"Daydreaming again, are we?"

"Yeah, I admit it. I've had such a wonderful day, after all."

"You were kidnapped this morning..."

"I know, but Link more than made up for it."

"Oh really? That good, hmm?"

"Don't get me started... Now, was there something you needed."

"Bad news, I'm afraid."

"Did Link empty out the kitchens again?"

"Ganon is amassing a force large enough to crush Hyrule with ease." She handed Zelda the map.

Zelda dried the water and spread it on the table. She quickly looked over Link's notes before looking back at Impa. "Why didn't Link bring this? It's his handwriting."

"He said he was attending to some official business. I assumed that you had sent him somewhere."

Zelda shook her head. "Did he say when he will return?"

"Before dark."

"Okay. Now, what else did Link tell you about Ganon and this 'invasion' idea of his?"

--

Link groaned as he pulled himself up the ledge. He stood and looked up the high mountain. Deciding that the Hero of Time title needed to be abbreviated and "Mountain-climber" needed to be added so he'd know what he'd be getting himself into, he sighed and jumped up, grabbing the ledge above him.

It turned out that the ledge wan't as sturdy as he had thought. He felt it give under his weight and send him falling back down to the ledge below. He winced as a sharp rock jabbed him in his spine. He sat up and dug around in his bag for something useful.

"Oh come on!" Link shouted, flinging the bag against the mountain wall. "There's got to be something!"

As he said that, there was a rumble and part of the mountain slid open. A Goron stuck its head out. "Goro?"

"Oh, thank you!" Link shouted, greatly relieved, rushing over to the Goron. "Can you take me to Darunia?"

"Sure, goro. Anything for you. Mind your head, now, goro."

Link crawled into the tunnel after grabbing his bag. He followed the Goron into the mountain. The Goron led him around the tunnel, through branching tunnels, and even down a steep incline. After a few minutes of crawling around in the darkness, the Goron, already barely visible, vanished from sight. Link stopped.

"Hey, you okay?"

"Yeah, goro! Come on! Jump down!"

"Bombs away," Link muttered and jumped down.

Link fell and landed in another dark tunnel, although this one was taller and wider, so Link could easily stand up. The Goron started moving instantly and Link chased after him.

After a minute or so, they came to a large door. The Goron pushed it and it rose. Instantly, Link's vision was flodded by hundreds of Gorons everywhere doing everything. It seems that the Goron City had become quite a bustling city. The Goron led Link to a large decorated door. It slid open and Link walked in.

"Link!" a gruff voice shouted. "Good to see you!" A large Goron walked up to Link. Darunia laughed, the rocky protrusions around his tough face shifting and pushing against one another. Attempting to pat Link on the shoulder, Link instead found himself pounded a foot into the ground by the Goron's muscular arms. Link pulled himself out of the ground.

"Well met, Darunia. How are you?"

"I'm doing quite well, actually. Some of my Brothers needed a place to stay, so the City's quite stocked with Gorons, as I'm sure you saw."

"Yeah, I noticed."

"It is nice of you to stop by for a visit. Come, let us walk." Darunia stood beside the large throne and slammed into it with such force that there was an audible crash that had to have been heard by everyone else in the city. The throne gave way and slid to the side, revealing a tunnel.

"Coming?"

Link walked over to the tunnel and was almost bowled over by the intense heat. "Man, that's hot!"

Darunia laughed. He walked over to one of the tables and tossed Link a red tunic that was laying on it. "There, try that!"

Link slid the tunic on and the temperature around him was cut in half. "Nice." He followed Darunia into the tunnel, which felt quite comfortable.

"The majesty of Death Mountain!" Darunia roared over the volcano, his voice echoing into the crater. The lave churned below them as Darunia kicked a boulder into the volcanic depths.

Darunia turned to Link. "Care for a swim?" He laughed at the look of horror on Link's face.

"I-I think I'll leave that to the Subrosians," Link replied.

"Oh, there's probably a few of them in there somewhere. One of my cousins drug a bunch with him here."

Link looked over the edge, scanning for the trademark green hooded cloak of the Subrosians. Not seeing any, he shrugged and stepped back from the edge.

"Now, my Brother, what was it you wanted to talk about?"

"I have a favor to ask of you."

"A favor, eh? Well, we certainly owe you a few of those, that's for sure! What is it you need?"

"Well, you remember Ganon, right?"

At the mention of Ganon, Darunia turned his head and spat into the volcano. "That foul beast. I remember him well. What about him?"

"He's gathering an army and from what I've heard, it's big enough to overrun the castle."

"That foul, heartless, gutless, yellow-bellied, thieving, murdering, idiotic, weak, worthless, dishonorable..." At this point Darunia lapsed into a language Link didn't recognize. He rumbled out ten or twelve words in that language and growled once he stopped. "I assume that this is what you need?" he asked, returning to a language Link understood. "Help with the foul Gerudo's invasion?"

"If possible."

"Well, you have as many able-bodied Gorons as I can round up!"

"Your help is greatly appreciated."

"Just give us an hour's notice and we'll show Ganon why he doesn't mess with a Sworn Brother of the Gorons!"

"Great!"

Darunia shoved a boulder out of the way and led Link up to the surface, outside of the mountain. He yawned and looked around. "Nightfall already? Time flies, right?"

Link froze. "Oh great..."

"Something wrong, my Brother?"

"I told Impa to tell Zelda that I'd be back by dark. She's probably starting to worry about me."

Darunia laughed. "Well, you better hurry along then. Poor men we'd be if we let the women worry."

Link jumped and slid down the side of the mountain. "Say hi to Link for me!"

"Will do, Brother! Return the courtesy to the Queen!"

"Alright!" Link saw the bottom fast approaching and braced himself for it. He impacted, the force of the ground shooting up his legs. He shrugged the momentary jolt aside and started the trek to the castle.

He silently strode through the darkened Kakariko Village. With noone in sight, not even the depressed kid that was ususally near the tree, Link was on his guard. He knew this town was never quiet, and he was glad when he passed the gate and down the staircase that was carved into the hill.

Unbeknowenced to Link, a pair of crimson red eyes watched his every move through the town. With catlike reflexes, the owner of the crimson eyes jumped quietly off of the roof and followed Link, staying a safe distance away.

As Link crossed the small bridge, he had that uneasy feeling that someone was watching. Thinking fast, he walked toward a large open space, which were plentiful in Hyrule Field. As soon as he heard that rustle of grass that always indicated a footstep, he spun around.

"So, we meet again. I figured you were gone with the curse."

"Oh no, Link, I would never dare leave," the cloaked stranger replied. "Besides, I just thought I'd drop by and say hello, since it has been so long."

"Well, hello to you too."

The stranger's crimson eyes stared into Link, as if delving through him. "I also thought I'd offer my congratulations as well."

"Congratulations? For what?"

"For you and the Queen, of course."

"How many people know about that! It's not even been a full day!"

"I know everything that happens around the castle. It's what I do."

"You know, coincidentally, Impa said almost exactly the same thing. Of course, you wouldn't know anything about that, now would you?"

The stranger shrugged. "I have a few con- wait... You haven't connected the dots yet, have you?"

"Not that I'm aware of."

The stranger let the cloak fall from his shoulders. He tilted his head back, the hood slipping off his head and falling behind him.

Before Link stood a young man dressed in what appeared to be a ninja suit. His face was covered, save for his eyes and the bit of blonde hair sticking out. There was no identifying markings except for the large symbol emblazoned upon the front of his suit. It was the symbol of the Sheikah, a giant red eye with a large red tear falling from it. Above the eye were three red triangles taking the place of eyelashes.

"A Sheikah? I thought Impa was the last one."

"Trust me, it's complicated. But for now, just assume I'm one as well. Name's Sheik."

"Well, it's nice to have a name to attach to the mysterious cloaked swordfighting stranger."

Sheik laughed. "Well, I just wanted to let you know that I'm still alive and kicking. Might even show up a bit more. You might want to get going, though. I'm sure Zelda is worried sick."

Link nodded. "Well, it's nice seeing you without a sword between us."

"Agreed. Now, get going!"

Link nodded and sped off toward the castle.

Link pushed open the castle door and was barely in before Zelda slammed into him and grabbed him in a fierce hug.

"You're safe! Oh, I was so worried! I thought something had happened to you."

Link returned the hug. "Well, don't worry. I'm alright. I didn't mean to be out later than dark, but I got a little sidetracked."

"Where did you go?" Zelda asked, releasing him.

"Impa told you about Ganon, right?" When Zelda nodded, he continued, "I went to talk to Darunia about reinforcements and tomorrow I plan to talk to King Zora about the same. Darunia also send his greetings."

"Oh, okay. And on that note, I've sent scouts to see what they can figure out. You wouldn't be able to find out anything more from this mysterious contact of yours, could you?"

Link laughed. "We'd have an easier time getting Ganon to dance with Naboruu."

Zelda nodded. "Okay then. Well, I'm tired, so I'm going to go to sleep. You should too if you plan to talk to King Zora."

"Okay. I guess I shall see you tomorrow, then."

"Deal."

Link watched as Zelda walked off to her room. Link waited a second more before heading to his.


	38. Instructions For King Zora

**A/N: Alright, just a note. FanFiction's not letting me use the blank enters, the large lines, and the things that you get with Shift plus the period. So, ----- means the same as a time lapse and (-) means a character or perspective change. Enjoy!**

**Chapter Thirty-Eight - Instructions For King Zora**

Link yawned as he sat up. It was early morning and, as always, the sun was shining directly on him. He grunted and fell back against the bed.

"You know, that's not a good attitude to have."

Link shrugged, refusing to sit up. "Oh well. I'll get over it." He felt a hand on his shoulder. "Don't you dare push me off this bed."

He felt another hand on his other shoulder, lifting him up. "I would never do something like that." The hands started to knead the back of his neck.

"That feels pretty good, you know."

"I'd hope so. Awake yet?"

"Gimmie a few more minutes," Link replied.

"Well, we'll see about that."

Link got the few minutes.

As the hands withdrew from him, he sighed. "I have no idea what you did, but I think I like you even more than I did yesterday."

"Oh don't worry, I'll teach you. Then you can do it to me."

"No problem there. So, what brings you to my room this fine morning?" Link asked, tilting his head back until Zelda's head came into view, albeit upside down.

"Oh, I just thought I'd check in on my favorite hero."

"Good choice." He lazily placed his arm around Zelda and used her as a support as he turned, righted, and sat himself up. "Got a question for you."

"Ask away."

"What is it with you people and early mornings?"

"Just because you'd rather sleep until noon doesn't mean that the rest of us think the same."

"Oh, but it's so much fun! I mean, think about it. Not only do you grab several hours of rest, you don't have to deal with daily life until you wake up."

"Well, if you'd rather sleep until noon and then go have lunch with King Zora, you're welcome to."

Link stopped for a second. "No way. No more Zora food for me. That 'chicken of the sea' Ruto keeps talking about not only tastes nothing like chicken, but it is an insult to real chicken."

Zelda laughed. "You're priceless."

Link slipped his arm around her waist. "Well, of course I am. Otherwise I'd have a conveniently large price tag upon my brow."

"Not for long, you wouldn't, because I'd empty out the castle coffers to purchase the glorious Hero of Time."

"And then I would stand like a statue in front of the main gate, the mere sight of me driving away intruders."

"Alright, I think your ego's grown a tad."

"Nah, I'm just playing with you. I'm still humble ol' me, no worries." He removed his arm from around Zelda and leaned back, falling over the edge of the bed the second he did so.

"Need some help there?"

"No, I'm just fine," he responded. "I think I might need a bigger bed though. Queen size or so," he replied absentmindedly.

"Link! Behave, will you?"

"Queen is a mattress size, thank you very much!"

"Yeah, _that's_ what you were thinking. Sure..."

"Honestly! I hadn't even begun to tear through the implications of a statement like that."

"Alright, if you say so."

"Now, if you were _offering_ anything, then-" Link was cut short by the introduction of an elbow into his stomach. "Hey!"

"Well, you deserved that one," she replied, pulling him back onto the bed.

Link made some sort of unintelligible sound as he got off of the bed. He walked over to the closet and switched out the fiery red tunic for the watery blue one.

"What, deciding that green's not your color anymore?"

"No, these two tunics do special things. The red one cuts temperatures in half and the blue one lets me breathe underwater."

"Interesting. Think you could convince the Zoras to make me a dress like that?"

"I'm sure I could, but how exactly do you plan to stay underwater that long? I've got my Iron Boots, but you've nothing that heavy."

"I've got you."

Link laughed. "Had I not said something about my Iron Boots, I'd think you were calling me fat."

"Oh no, see, fat people float a lot easier."

"I get it. _That's_ how King Zora'd stay afloat!"

"Link! We do not insult dignitaries, even if it may be true!"

"Dignitary? Not talking about my father are you?" Ruto asked from the door.

Link paled. "Um, no?"

"Ah, don't worry about it. I've been trying to get him to lose a couple hundred pounds anyway."

"So, what brings you up here?" Link asked.

"I thought I'd swing by and say hi."

"Oh, okay. Perfect timing, though. I was just about to go on down in your direction. Got some business with your father."

"Ah, well, that's quite ironic."

"You coming too, Zelda? You can discuss your Zora Dress with Ruto."

Zelda laughed. "Sure. Might as well. Might do me good to get out of bed before noon."

Link and Zelda laughed. Ruto, however, was thoroughly confused. "Wait, I thought this was... Link's... room..." She seemed to have figured something out, because when she next looked at Zelda, it was a strange look of either happiness or surprise, Link couldn't tell.

"Ruto, don't you dare," Zelda said quickly.

Ruto laughed. "Don't I dare what? Got something to hide, now do we?"

"Zellie's got something to hide?" Link asked, turning away from his closet. "Do tell."

"He doesn't know? But... how..? You didn't..?"

"Ruto, I'd suggest you leave it alone before you find more words to stumble over."

"You two are seriously confusing, not that it surprises me or anything," Link said, giving up on trying to follow their conversation.

Zelda jumped off of the bed. "Well, that's good. Now, I am going to go change into something proper. I shall see you two outside."

Link nodded and Zelda left the room. Link continued to dig around in his closet, shoving a few things in his bag.

"I figure congratulations are in order, then," Ruto said.

"Thanks, but I really didn't do too much that would be worth congratulating."

"Well, um, okay, I guess..."

Link shut the closet door and slung the bag over his shoulder. "Well, shall we get going?"

Ruto nodded and followed Link out of the room and out of the castle. Once outside, they met up with Zelda and started toward the Zora Domain.

-----

Zelda watched as the waterfall slowed, granting them passage. Ruto jumped over first, followed by Link.

"Come on, Zelda," he said.

"I'm, um, not sure if I can make it..."

"Don't worry, I doubt that you'll fall. Worse come to worse you only half make it and I catch you."

"Okay... Here I go!" Zelda ran toward the ledge and launched off it. At first, it looked fine, but at the last second, she fell short and slipped off the edge. Link shot forward and grabbed her to prevent her from falling. He pulled her up and she fell back against the tunnel wall.

"Remind me never to do that again. There has to be another way in."

"Well, you can dive into Lake Hylia if you'd rather," Ruto commented.

Zelda stood up. "No thanks. I think I'll leave the deep diving to you and Link." She started into the tunnel, Ruto and Link following.

"So, how's the Zora population doing?" Link queried.

Ruto shrugged. "It's doing okay. The boom kids are maturing around this time, so the Domain's swelled. And mature Zoras mean decent conversations. They're too old for the strained banter that they prided in."

"Well, that's good."

"Hey, are you two gonna hang around back there or are you going to come along with me?" Zelda shouted back to them.

Link and Ruto sped up, catching up with Zelda. They bypassed the main part of the Domain, instead following the path to the throne room."

"Ruto!" King Zora boomed. "And Queen Zelda, what a surprise! And of course our own little hero. Pray tell, what have I done to deserve such an honor?"

"We have a slight problem," Zelda explained. She continued on to tell him of Ganon's invasion. After she finished, the Zora appeared to be thinking hard on something.

After another few minutes, he nodded. "Just give me a few days notice and I'll have a top notch batch of Zora that will march on your command."

"Thank you," Zelda replied. "My scouts should return by tonight. I shall send them this way once they arrive and they can fill you in further."

The King nodded. "Okay. Ruto, alert Sarnidae about these plans and instruct him to round up our best fighters."

Ruto laughed. "No prob." She ran toward the waterfall, shouting, "Hey, Sardine!"

King Zora sighed. "She comes up with these pet names for everyone. After the fiftieth or so, it gets a bit annoying."

Link shrugged. "Girls will be girls, I guess."

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean!" Zelda demanded.

"Present company excluded, of course," Link hastily added.

"Better. You're learning."

Link turned back to King Zora. "Once again, we thank you for offering support to our defense. We must be heading back now to await the scouts."

"Very well. Until then!" he shouted, bidding them farewell.

Link followed Zelda from the throne room. "Well, that went a lot better than I planned. And faster."

"Well, sometimes it's better to be short and to the point. If you wait around for all the formalities, there'd be a lot of stuff that wouldn't get done. Ganon would be at our door if we went through all the formalities. Now, shall we get back?"

"Sure." Link slid his arm around Zelda as they walked out of the Zora Domain. "So, did you enjoy our little trip?"

"Why, yes, I suppose. There's nothing like talking about the immanent destruction of my country to make you enjoy the pleasures of life. Especially this time of the year."

"Big fan of spring, are you?" Link asked.

"Of course. Life all around you, everything coming back from the death grip of winter. There's a sort of majestic tone to it all. It just shows you that anything can happen, you know?"

Link nodded. "Yeah. It kinda shoves everything back into perspective."

Zelda was silent, in thought, as they walked along the river. While she was thinking, Link listened to the birds emerging. He had never realized that there was so many different types of birds in one place. Hundreds of birdsongs were lifted to the skies in perfect harmony.

Zelda turned to look at Link, stopping. "You meant what you said, right? All those nights ago?"

Link smiled, turning to her. "Every word of it."

She nodded. "Okay."

"Something on your mind?" he asked, watching her gaze up at the sky. By the look in her eyes, he knew that she could be looking in any direction and it wouldn't matter. "Rupee for your thoughts."

"Oh, it's nothing. I was just thinking. Nothing of major consequence."

"Zelda, when you start into your thinking mode here, it's only because of something important. Listen, if you have doubts, tell me. I don't want you to have to deal with them alone."

"No, well, yeah, of course I have doubts, but those are just small things. It's this war that's got me worried. I mean, my entire kingdom is threatened and I haven't even been Queen for a month! That and you being in it isn't helping."

Link turned Zelda to look at him. "Zelda, understand this: I will not let this war end badly for you. Ganon will not win, this I promise, and I don't break promises, ever. And don't worry about me being in it. I can handle anything Ganon throws at me. Ganon himself might be a bit tricky, but nothing I can't handle."

"You need to practice," Zelda said after a minute of walking.

"Practice? Are you implying that I, the great and glorious Hero of Time, who is, may I remind you, unbeatable, may actually need training?"

Zelda laughed. "Maybe... And even if you don't, I could use some."

"Oh, I see now. You're trying to get me alone with you. Probably trying to make me a mind slave so I'll do whatever you want whenever you want."

"Oh, no, that I've already accomplished. I just could use the practice and I thought you'd be up to the challenge."

"One, I am _not_ your mind slave puppet. Two, I still say you've got some secret agenda. Three, I would be more than happy to help you in any way I can."

"I'll remember that you said that. Besides, if I had a secret agenda that I could only further by getting you alone, look around. You and I _are_ alone. Right now I could do whatever I wanted and it would be your word against mine, and I'm the Queen."

"Delightfully evil. But I don't think you'd do anything, honestly. You're too nice."

"Too nice? Well, you don't know me very well. I am quite a sinister figure, prone to spouts of madness."

Link laughed. "Spouts of madness? Only proof of madness I've seen is you shopping. Now _that's_ a horror to behold!"

She shrugged. "Well, I'll give you that one. Put a few hundred Rupees in my hand and put me in one of those really big stores that has basically everything and I can get a bit crazy."

Link slid down the hillside and stayed there, laying back against the incline. Zelda walked down the slope and stood in front of Link. "You getting up?"

"Well, I was thinking about it, but it turns out that this is seriously comfortable. You should join me."

"Join you? Why should I do that?"

"Because it's comfortable." He sat here for a second more before extending his hand. "Alright... Help me up." She grabbed his hand and attempted to pull him up, but instead, he quickly jerked her down onto him. She rolled to the side and scowled at Link.

"Hey! You tricked me!"

"Agreed."

"You're a sneaky-"

"Yup."

"-conniving-"

"Yeah."

"-little-"

Link covered her mouth before she could continue. "Oh no you don't! Say it and you'll regret it!"

She removed his hand from her mouth and stood up. "Little fairy boy," she remarked decidedly, daring him to do something.

"Now you've gone and done it," Link said, watching the small light rush at Zelda.

"You did not just insult Link!" Navi cried, lunging at Zelda. "Here I am, deciding to say hi because it's been forever since I've seen you two and here you're not only insulting Link, but me, all fairies, and all Kokiri! How dare you!" She attempted to slam into Zelda but found that she was only annoying the Queen. After trying to bean Zelda with a tiny Deku Stick, she shouted in frustration and hurled the stick back into the forest. "First Saria vanishes and now Zelda's insulting Link! What's this world coming to?"

"Calm down, Navi, it's alright. Zelda was just playing around," Link said, watching the fairy flutter about, trying to get things in order again.

Zelda nodded. "Of course I was. I'd never try to intentionally hurt Link, physically or mentally, even if it is easy."

"Hey!"

"And as for Saria, or Sarah, or whatever she's going by nowadays, last I heard, she had just found a home up in Kakariko. I'd suggest you drop in."

"Can't I hang out with you and Link?" Navi asked hopefully.

Zelda motioned for the fairy to come closer. Obliging, Navi flew over to Zelda, who whispered something to her that Link couldn't hear. Upon hearing it, Navi seemed to turn a strange pinkish hue for just a second or two before returning to her natural color. She rose up into the air.

"Well, I think I'll scout out Saria. Have fun, you two."

Link waved goodbye as she shot off. After the fairy was a safe distance away, Link turned to Zelda. "What in Hyrule did you say to her?"

Zelda smiled, barely. "Oh, nothing. Just that we needed to rush back to the castle. You know, the scouts and all."

Link nodded, but watched Zelda as she turned away and started across the slope. "You sure?"

"Yeah," she answered. "I mean, it's not word for word or anything, but it was more or less the same."

Link shrugged. He jumped up and walked up to Zelda. "Now, where were we? Oh, yeah, you were calling me sneaky. Which reminds me..."

Zelda turned her head so she could see Link out of the corner of her eye. "Yeah..?"

"Well, I just thought I'd tell you..." Link started as they continued onward towards the large Castle.

-----

"Oh, is that so?" Zelda asked, interested. "And you say you launched it back at the other one?"

"Yeah. Of course, I could have just unleashed hundreds of Fire and Ice Arrows if I had so chosen."

"So, you'd rather let them assault you with blazing fire and freezing air instead of pulling out a few arrows?"

"Yeah. Makes for a more challenging battle."

"Ah, I see. You prefer to make your enemies underestimate you than unleash your full wrath on them."

"Exactly," Link replied.

"So then, with that in mind, how much did you let Ganon underestimate you when he captured me?" Zelda asked, clearly enjoying the reaction that she expected.

Her expectations were precise. Link stopped for a second. "Well, um, you see... Okay, okay, you got me. Against Ganon I didn't hold back. But then again, why should I have? He was an callous, thieving brute who deserved to lose every liter of blood that he lost that day."

"I'll give you that. So, with the exception of Ganon, you've always held back on your fights?"

"Every single one." Link swung the great castle doors open and followed Zelda in.

"Remind me to always stay on your good side," Zelda commented, stopping and turning to face him as he closed the doors behind them.

"Zelda, all of Hyrule would have to get on my bad side before you would."

"Well, that's terribly sweet of you."

"No, I'm serious," he said as he walked up to her. "There is no possible way for that to happen. I love you, Zelda. Nothing can change that."

Zelda sighed. "I know, but-" She was suddenly interrupted by a person busting through the large castle doors. He stopped, breathing heavily and looking like he was about to fall down on the floor. All attention was turned to the man, who turned toward Zelda.

"Your Highness... We... have a slight problem..."


	39. Behind The Locked Door

**Chapter Thirty-Nine - **

"What is it?" Zelda demanded.

"Ganon's troops... are about... two days from the castle. And they've started marching."

"What? I thought we had a week at least to get ready!" Zelda exclaimed.

"They're faster... than we expected. They've also got... reinforcements... from across the sea. Humans who're battle-trained."

"Ganon's gone too far this time. I can understand Gerudos and Moblins and Iron Knuckles and such, but people from other countries?" Link asked rhetorically.

"You did good," Zelda said to the scout. "Go on and rest."

The scout nodded. "Thank you, my liege." He bowed and left the castle.

Not wasting a moment, Zelda turned to one of the people who had came in when the scout had burst into the room. "I want a messenger found and sent to King Zora with this news. Also, dispatch a second one to Death Mountain."

"Got it."

"Good. I'll be in my room," Zelda replied, walking up the stairs.

The guard walked off. The others left only after Link shooed them away. After doing so, he turned around and walked up the stairs. Link climbed the staircase and stopped at the top. Thinking quickly, he took a right and found himself standing in front of a large door that he could recognize at sight - Zelda's bedroom door.

He knocked and, after hearing her shout for him to come in, opened the door. Link shut the door behind him and walked over to Zelda, who was standing at the window.

"What's wrong?" Link asked.

She sighed. "There's only a few days until Ganon slams into us. We're in no way ready for a war, let alone a siege, if it comes to that. Currently, you're our best fighter and our only experienced fighter to boot. This whole battle mostly rides on your shoulders, you know. And all the while I'm silently begging and pleading that you won't have to go out there against those odds and possibly get killed. I couldn't stand to lose you."

"You're worrying about this too much."

"How can I not? Every time I turn around, there's another reminder of the danger hanging over us. The world's creeping in and I'm helpless to stop it."

Zelda watched as Link turned around and walked over to the doors. With an audible click, Link fastened the lock on the door.

"Link, uh, why did you just lock the door?" Zelda asked as he turned back to her.

"We're alone now. Just me and you. Everything else is now behind the door. All those worries, those problems, they're all outside this room now. You're just Zelda now, not Queen Zelda, not in charge of protecting a country, not under threat of death, got it? I want you to just forget about all of these problems, even if for just a few hours. It'll be good for you."

Zelda smiled. "You know what? Sounds like a good plan."

"Well, I'd like to think so. So, Zelda, what would you like to do for the next few hours?"

"I don't know. Wanna try thinking up something good to talk about?"

"Might as well. Forgot to plan this far ahead."

Zelda laughed as she sat down on the couch. "Tell me if you think of anything."

Link nodded, taking a seat on a chair. "Same to you."

The two sat there, brainstorming ideas, yet, neither of them spoke. This silence went on for quite some time before Link finally spoke.

"Blegh."

Zelda laughed. "Well, blegh to you too."

They both laughed for a second or two before falling back into silence. Once again, several minutes passed by, but this time, it was Zelda who spoke.

"You want to know something weird?"

"Always," Link replied.

"Don't you find it strange that it hasn't rained since before my birthday?"

"Huh. You're right. I hadn't really thought about it, but that is pretty weird, especially in this season."

"We're about due for a rain," Zelda commented. Suddenly, as if on cue, a lightning bolt raced across the sky, bringing the thunder and pouring rain. They both went over to the window, watching the rain.

"Alright! Now, say 'Rupees should be falling from the sky!' Please! Say it!" Link begged.

Zelda laughed. "Rupees should be falling from the sky."

Link excitedly stuck his upper body out the window, bag in hand. As he waited for the downpour of Rupees, Zelda opened up her bag of Rupees and threw a red one at Link. It hit him in the center of his back, causing him to jerk up. He spun around and grabbed the Rupee, shoving it in his bag.

"Ha! Finders keepers!"

Zelda merely upended her bag onto the table, silver and orange Rupees glimmering brightly.

Link growled and put his bag down. "Yeah, well, that's from the coffers. I earned all of mine."

"Well, I get paid, so I sort of earn mine."

"Oh? How so?"

"You see, the people pay me to keep them safe and keep everything under control."

"Ah, I see. And what about the Picori?"

"Picori? Now you're making things up. I'll believe you about Subrosians, flying bears, talking monkeys, undead Ikana and even the occasional giant flying whale-like fish, but that just sounds made up."

"The Picori are real, just like all of the others. And for a matter of fact, there's supposedly Subrosians in Goron City now as it is."

"And what are these Picori?"

"The Picori, also called the Minish, are itsy-bitsy little people who run around everywhere hiding stuff. They're my current theory on why I can trim down large bushes and groups of grass and find bombs and Rupees."

"Ah. And if they're supposedly so tiny, why would I have to protect them? What could I protect them _from_? The occasional foot?"

Link laughed. "I don't know. Just a suggestion. And you know, if you keep making jokes at the expense of the Picori, I'll gather up a mini-Minish army and invade your room."

"Then I'd hire an army of feet to guard me."

"Oh, come on, the Minish wouldn't be stopped by feet! Together, they've taken down some of the largest and bizarre bugs I've ever seen. They're unstoppable!"

Zelda thought for a second then said, "Pesticide."

"Oh, that's a new low even for you!"

"You know I'm kidding, Link. I'd never dream of hurting your little pixie friends."

"_Picori!_ And they're not always little, you know. Ezlo and Vaati weren't. Well, Ezlo was cursed into a hat and Vaati was evil."

"Vaati... That name sounds familiar."

"It should! I've had to beat him two or three times already!"

"Oh? So, tell me about these adventures of yours again."

Link walked over to where Zelda had sat down. "Well, it all started while I was staying with the town smith. He gave me a sword to take to the festival for the competition they were going to have. So, I headed down there, soon joined by Princess Zelda. This was, of course, not you, but one of the many princesses named Zelda. Either way, we were at the festival when..."

-----

"And so, with one final stroke from the Four Sword, the curse was lifted from the princess. I was rewarded, as usual, and with my tutelage under the smith brought to a close, I boarded a boat that Ezlo provided and sailed off to another adventure."

"Well, that sounded like quite an exciting adventure in itself. Shrinking and growing to stop a Minish gone mad," Zelda commented.

They were sitting on the couch, Zelda leaning slightly on Link. Link, who had drawn his sword to emphasize the 'final stroke' part, nimbly sheathed the sword with his left hand. Tossing the sheathed sword on the bed, Link returned back to the conversation. "Well, yeah, but it's not my favorite adventure. Not by a long shot."

"Oh?" Zelda asked, slightly surprised. "And which adventure of yours is your favorite?"

Link grinned. "One where I chased down the keys for a giant door, drew a sword from a sealed room, and fought the greatest evil in the world for the life of the most beautiful princess in the land."

"Oh? And how did that adventure end?" Zelda asked, already knowing the answer.

"I don't know. I'm still adventuring," Link responded, surprising Zelda. "However, I must say that love is an adventure that I'm quite fine with continuing."

Link turned to look into Zelda's radiant blue eyes. He knew that he could easily get lost in those eyes if he wasn't careful. Of course, he could care less, had she not looked away at that exact second.

"Do you really mean that?" she asked him as she glanced away.

"Of course. I always have, and I always will."

Zelda nodded and leaned on Link's chest. "Promise?"

"Every time," Link responded.

Zelda buried her head in Link as he slid his arms around her. Wrapped in Link's warm embrace, she dozed fast. Barely awake, she whispered, "Good night, fairy boy..."

"Good night, princess," Link returned, almost asleep himself. Yes, sleep was definitely contagious. Definitely... contagious...


	40. A Prince Cometh

**Chapter Fourty - A Prince Cometh**

The town guard rose quietly from sleep as the sun shone down on him from the small window. He stood up slowly, putting on the armor that all guards wore as their uniform. After taking a minute to fully wake, he left the house and walked to the drawbridge to relieve the night watchman.

To his great surprise, he instead found a man sitting on the ledge next to the risen drawbridge, staring off across Hyrule Field.

"Hey!" the guard shouted. "You! You can't be up there!"

The man looked down from the ledge. "Oh?"

"Yeah, oh! Now you get down here before I drag you before the Queen for disobeying commands!"

The man vaulted over to the drawbridge and slid down it, landing on his feet with ease. As he did so, the guard noticed that he was just a kid, not even over eighteen by the looks of him. He wore a strange green tunic, a sword strapped to his back. His messy blonde hair stuck out at all sorts of angles as his sapphire blue eyes scanned the guard.

"Now, who are you and what were you doing up there?" the guard demanded.

"Well, I was monitoring the caravan that's coming from the east. As for who I am, I'm Link."

"Yeah, right, and I'm Queen Zelda," the guard responded.

"No, see, Zelda has long, golden hair rather than short, brown hair. And she's probably a lot nimbler than you, not to mention the fact that she wears dresses and you, sir, do not. And she'd recognize me instantly whereas you haven't."

"Well, mister _Link_, we might just see if the Queen will recognize you like you say she will."

"Sounds like a good idea. Shall we go now?"

"Never saw someone so eager to face Her Majesty. Sure, then, off we go."

The guard, followed by Link, walked along the streets and up to the large castle. The guard opened the main doors and the throne room doors and pushed Link ahead into the room.

"Your Highness, I am sorry to bother you so early in the morning but I found this guy here claiming to be L-"

"Link!" Zelda shouted, rushing down toward Link and embracing him. "I was wondering where you ran off to!"

"Well, Zellie, when I woke up this morning, you looked so peaceful and all so I decided not to wake you. I went out to the drawbridge for a while to see what I could see."

"I was worried that you had ran off to go butcher Ganon before he got here!"

"Er, well, um, terribly sorry, ser Link, you know, never can be too careful, after all," the guard managed to say, stumbling over every word.

Link laughed. "Ah, it's alright. You were just doing your duty. Speaking of, you might want to get to it."

"Oh! Right you are! Pardon me, my Queen," he exclaimed before rushing out of the room.

Zelda laughed a bit before turning back to Link. "Listen, I have a few dozen stacks of paperwork I have to fill out, so mind staying here and making sure there's no other problems this morning?"

"No problem," Link responded. "I get to sit in the big chair, right?"

"Sure, go ahead," Zelda replied, walking over to one of the doors. "Just be nice!" she shouted back, closing the door behind her.

"Sure thing." Link walked over to the large throne, admiring the craftwork on it. The entire thing was of strong hardwood, carved into ornate designs, most of which were accentuated with gold inlay and dozens of precious gems. The actual sitting part was purple velvet, expensive to a fault.

Link flopped back into the chair. "Man, this is comfortable. Why doesn't Zelda sit here all the time?"

Suddenly, there were dozens of trumpet blasts from outside the double doors. The doors swung open, revealing a large procession that entered the hall. The men with the trumpets split into two groups and a short elderly man walked forward between them, carrying a large scroll. He stopped in front of the group and unfurled the scroll.

"His Majesty, Prince Guidor the Twelfth, son of King Narcer the Fifteenth, wishes to announce his presence at the court of Her Highness, Queen Zelda the, er..." At this point he looked up from his scroll at Link. "You wouldn't happen to know her full title, would you?"

Link laughed. "Zellie's full title? Well, if you're looking for a number, I know there's at least one other Zelda in her family, plus the seemingly countless others scattered across the world. However, for courtesy, just leave it at Queen Zelda, no number."

The man nodded and continued, "At the court of Her Highness, Queen Zelda." He bowed and stepped to the side.

The trumpets blared again, and this time a man just a few years older than Link stepped forward and stopped next to the man. He was a sight to behold, for sure. He had a golden crown with diamonds set into it on top of his jet-black hair. He had some strange purple and white combination suit on that was partially covered by a bright red jacket, all of which sparked from the countless gems sewn into it. He bowed gracefully and turned to look at the throne.

Link stood and clapped. "Good show, good show. Had I known Zelda had this planned I might have volunteered to do that paperwork for her so she wouldn't have missed the performance."

The man looked at Link strangely. "You mean that the Queen isn't here? And who are you?"

"Yeah, she's here, somewhere. Off doing some sort of paperwork. And as for me, I'm Link."

"Link? You're sitting on Hyrule's Throne and you've no titles at all?" Prince Guidor asked, confused.

"Well, I have my share of titles, of course. I'm just not as hyped on them as you seem to be. For the record, my titles include, but are not limited to, Hero of Time, Cursebreaker, Dreamweaver, and Savior of the Oracles of Seasons and Ages. Anything else?"

"Yeah, why are you here and not Queen Zelda?"

"You're really thickheaded, aren't you?" Link asked, sitting back down. "She's busy, so can I take a message?"

"Would you please inform her that Prince Guidor has arrived and wishes to ask for her hand in marriage?"

"Hold up! You _what_?"Link exclaimed, jumping back up.

"I wish to beseech Queen Zelda for her hand in marriage," Prince Guidor repeated.

"Like I'm gonna tell her that! Listen, guy, just go back to wherever you came from, alright? I have a nagging feeling that she'd tell you the same."

"And you have the authority to speak for the Queen?" Prince Guidor asked, obviously not liking Link.

"Well, more than anyone else does. I'm closer to Zellie than any of you ever will be."

"You will refer to Her Highness by her proper title!"

"You will refer to Her Highness as the amazing woman who had the decency not to have you forcibly removed from the castle!"

"Why you little-"

"Little what?"

"Insolent twerp! When Her Highness finds out how you've acted toward a neighboring prince, I'll have your head!"

"One, Zellie wouldn't kill me even if you demanded it. Two, she'd listen to me first anyway."

"Oh yeah? Then I shall take your head myself!" He drew his sword and pointed it at Link. "Now, either take me or my message to the Queen or I shall find her myself!"

Link drew his own blade. "I never back down from a challenge. Now, you won't get offended if I win, will you?"

Guidor chose not to respond, instead lunging at Link with his sword. Link sidestepped and whacked Guidor in the back of his head with the flat of the Master Sword. Guidor spun around and growled, swinging his sword back and forth at Link. Link, of course, blocked each blow with ease, taking a step back each time. Guidor of course took this as Link weakening from the blocks.

"Giving in already, are we?" Guidor asked as Link backed up against the wall. He prepared the next blow, but instead of the steel ringing out against steel, there was a harsh sound as the sword smashed into the stone wall.

Link, who had slipped around Guidor, whacked him again. "Oh, no, just deciding to be a little slippery. I need the practice, anyway."

Guidor turned and brought his sword up, attempting to disarm Link. Instead, Guidor found himself the one without the blade as Link reversed the technique, sending Guidor's sword clattering away. He brought his blade up to right under Guidor's chin.

"I win."

Guidor laughed. He backed up and caught his sword, which the old man had tossed to him. "I doubt that." He lunged again and Link blocked, their swords sliding along the other blade.

Of course, it was at this moment Zelda stormed into the room. "How dare you!"

Guidor instantly backed up, sheathed his blade, and bowed toward Zelda. "Your Highness! This foul miscreant of a servant refused to do what he was told and attempted to kill me!"

Instead of paying attention to Prince Guidor, she walked over to Link. Taking one look at Guidor, she laughed. "Held back, didn't you?"

"Why, yes, your Highness," Prince Guidor responded.

"I wasn't talking to you."

"Oh."

Link nodded. "Of course I did. Besides that, that old guy over there gave him his sword back the first time."

"I see. And this little skirmish came about because..?"

"He actually had the gall to come in here and tell me, of all people, _me_, to tell you that he wanted to propose to you! And then he actually expected me to deliver the message!"

"Him too?" Zelda asked, sighing.

"Him too? Exactly how many proposals have you received!"

"Well, there was the forty or so before my father died, and he's the sixty-third afterwards."

"And you neglected to tell me this because..?"

"Because you'd want to go behead them all if I did tell you."

"And for good reason!"

"Um, excuse me?" Guidor asked quietly.

"Yeah?"

"Um, about_ my_ proposal, I was wondering if you could give me an answer."

"Oh. Well, no. Sorry, but, see, Link here's as close to a boyfriend as a Queen's allowed to have, so I can't go around accepting proposals unless you really, really want your head on a pike."

"Hey, I've achieved boyfriend status!"

"Of course you have. Was there any doubt?"

"Well, with this war and all, I didn't figure you'd want to risk it, me being your most powerful fighter and all," Link answered.

Guidor looked at Zelda, confused. "Wait, a _war_? With who?"

"Ganondorf Dragmire, King of Thieves," she answered, turning back to Link. "Of course I'd risk it! I love you, Link, and no war's gonna stop that. Besides, you told me yourself that you'll be fine."

Link started walking away from Guidor. "And I plan to be fine."

"Uh, your Highness?" Guidor asked.

"Oh, uh, goodbye?" she answered.

"Er, okay. Goodbye." He turned and walked back out, followed by the trumpet-carrying people and the old man.

"Well then, what's the confusion?" Zelda asked Link.

"Well, I didn't expect you to think of me like that yet. Agreed, it makes sense, but I didn't think Queens could have boyfriends."

"Well, I'm not sure if Queens can or not, but since most Queens are married, you'd think not. However, I might as well."

"Okay then. Are all mornings like this?"

"Most of them. The fifty-ninth guy had elephants, though."

-----

"Good. The army's all but ready. There's no response from either Darunia or Ruto, so that's unfortunate, but with you with me, there should be no trouble yet."

"Hey, you think Darunia will bring the Subrosians?" Link asked, sitting down under one of the courtyard's enormous trees.

"I still have to see these Subrosians of yours," Zelda replied, following suit.

"I promise you, after this war is over, I'll take you to see them, okay?"

"You sure you can promise that, Link? I mean, we are facing innumerable odds here. I'd love it if you could, but I really don't want to get my hopes up and all."

"You know, Zellie, you're confusing. First you're not wanting me to fight so I don't risk getting killed, and now you're wanting me to make sure I can promise something just in case I get killed."

She looked away from Link. "I just don't want to get my hopes up, that's all. I have no doubts that you'll be okay, but just in case..." She seemed to give way at something because when she next looked at him, her eyes were brimming with tears. "I don't know what to do anymore..."

"What do you mean?"

"First my father dies, then my country is tossed into a war that could be the end of Hyrule. Now I have to gather up an army of people, some of which may not live to see next week, to go fight against immeasureable odds for their new Queen who so far's been more trouble than good. And here you are, about to lead this army into a battle where there's only a slim chance of victory. I don't know how much more of this I can take. Hyrule lies at the brink of destruction and it's all my fault. I've given the orders to send hundreds of men to their deaths. And for what? Just a few years of peace before Ganon pops back up and obliterates us again? Link, I don't know if I can handle all this. I'm to blame for all of it anyway."

"That's not true and you know it. Ganon caused your father's death and started this war. I've defeated Ganon so may times I'm starting to lose count. Everything will be fine; you have my word. And if I have any choice in it, Ganon won't ever see the light of day again, nor the dark of night."

"I know you say that, and I believe you, but then, it's still a war with thousands of Ganon's creature things. I know you have problems with swarms of them, whether you'd like to tell me or not. I'm just so worried, Link. What if something goes wrong? What then?"

"Then, worse come to worse, we pull back, regroup, and figure out how to force Ganon back into battle. Besides, Ganon could never defeat me in a million years and we all know how I am with Time, so I doubt Ganon would put up the effort to deal with me for a few millennia."

"You're sure? The last thing I need is for you to collapse in the middle of the battlefield."

"Zelda, I'm fine. Don't worry so much." He slid his arms around Zelda, pulling her close to him. "Nothing's gonna happen. You and me, we'll ride off and face this army. And we'll face it together, okay?"

"Okay."


	41. One Last Charge For Zelda

**A/N: Here it is, my beloved fans! I present to you the final chapter in my story! I hope you enjoy and read the next story in the continuing HA Saga! Well, read on and review!**

**--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

**Chapter Fourty-One - One Last Charge... For Zelda**

In the middle of the town he stood, ready and waiting. At an invisible signal, he took off, vaulting over the low-roofed buildings. He quickly approached and passed the gate, weaving his way across Hyrule Field. He scrambled up the walls to Hyrule Castle Town and landed silently inside the walls. Shooting through the Market, he steered himself toward the large castle. Passing undetected, he arrived at the gate,which he jumped easily over. He scaled these walls as well and came to the top. He ran along the top of the wall, stopping whenever he saw life. Twice he stopped and hid in the darkness while guards passed. Once, right above the courtyard, he stopped as well.

He saw the two figures sleeping underneath the ancient rowan tree. On any other day, he would just assume that they were two star-crossed lovers napping under an old tree, lost in each other, but he knew better this time. One was none other than the legendary Hero of Time, Rescuer of Hyrule, and the other was the Princess of Destiny, although she was not known by that name anymore. He watched for a moment as they slept, blissfully unaware of his presence at the wall.

He continued his journey. Running along the wall for a few more yards, he dropped onto a small hut that was obscured by the garden's numerous trees. He opened the door and walked in, closing it behind him and obscuring the room in darkness.

"You came," a feminine voice noted.

"Of course," he replied. "Now, what is it you want?"

"Your Queen there has set the wheels in motion, but has neglected to finish it off. We need you to do that."

"Sounds simple enough. What do I need to do?"

There was a rustling of paper. "Here, take this to the head guard."

"Gotcha. That's it, though? Just drop it off?"

"You have to put it inside the station house."

"I see." He opened the door, allowing the slim light to fill the room, revealing a small desk with a Gerudo thief standing in front of it. She wore the customary outfit of the Gerudo thieves, but instead of the twin blades, she wore two large sheathed armlets strapped to her wrists. In the moonlight, she examined the fastenings on one of the armlets.

He stepped out of the hut and launched himself up the wall. He quietly but quickly dashed along the wall, not stopping until he reached the station house, the 'home base' of the guards. He opened the door, walked in and sat the scroll on the large table.

"Hey, who are you?" a guard demanded, walking in.

"Me? Just a helpful friend." He backed up and hurled a Deku Nut to the ground, vanishing in the bright light.

-----

Link awoke to the sound of a fist banging on his door. He sat up, ignoring the fact that he was in his bed and had not fallen asleep there, and shouted for the person to come in. The door swung open and one of the countless guards stepped in.

"Ser Link, you have been called."

"Called? By who?"

"By the Queen, sir. She wishes you at the forefront."

"The forefront? Come on, give me something I can understand."

"The battle has begun. The great battle of Hyrule."

Instantly awake, Link jumped from his bed. "Tell her I'm on my way."

The guard nodded and left the room. Link scrambled to get dressed and ready. He grabbed his sword and bolted from the room.

As he left the castle, he found the area around the castle deserted. The Market was almost as bad; the only living things in the area were soldiers. He ran out the drawbridge and found himself in the middle of what was obviously a war camp. Link saw Zelda near a group of soldiers. He ran over to her.

"You have done well," she told one of the soldiers. "Keep it up. The fate of Hyrule may come to lay on your shoulders, and I believe that we may be well off, for now. Ah, Link," she said, noticing him. "I see you were still asleep?"

"And what makes you think that?"

"You've got your tunic on backwards."

Link chuckled, embarrassed, as he righted his tunic. "There. That better?"

"Much. Now, you know our situation, right?"

Link nodded. "Yeah, I think. Ganon's forces are right in front of us. They outnumber us almost two to one. The Gorons are not here yet and there's been no word from the Zoras, which leaves us as well off as a fish out of water."

Zelda nodded. "That about sums it up. As we speak, our forces are amassing at the front line, where they await my command to charge. Mount up, because you're coming with me."

"Sure, just lead the way."

"Epona is waiting for you." Zelda started walking, Link following close behind her. She stopped at the stables and opened the door. As if waiting for them, Epona and Zelda's warhorse walked out to them. Link mounted Epona and drew his sword. He waited until Zelda had done the same before following her down a small path.

At the end of the path was a large group of soldiers spanning out across Hyrule Field. Some were on horseback, but for the most part, they were pikemen or swordsmen. Four of the horsemen rode up to Zelda.

"My liege, we await your order."

Zelda nodded and turned to the hundreds of soldiers that were readying for their march.

"Men of Hyrule, each and every one of you have answered the call to arms against the foul invader Ganondorf. You have proven your loyalty to the Crown today, and soon, you will prove your loyalty to me. The foul King of the Gerudo has attacked our lands and even now marches on Hyrule Castle. He thinks that he will overrun us. He thinks that we are weak. But he is wrong! He will not overrun us because we are strong! We will show him the true might of Hyrule! He thinks he is powerful and do you know why? He has surrounded himself with people from across the sea and he holds the Triforce of Power. But you know what? We are stronger than these warmongering seamen! And he may have a third of the Triforce, but I hold a third of the same and Link holds the other piece! He has more troops, I admit this to you. Do you see them, over there?" She pointed to the far army that was steadily getting closer. "They wish to eradicate us from our fair Hyrule! But this is our land we fight for! Our homes! Our very way of life! We fight to protect the ones we know and love! This makes us strong! We must stem the tide of battle and throw their advantages in their faces! Now, I have one question for you all! Are you with me?"

There was a deafening roar and a cheer went up. Zelda nodded, satisfied. "Good! Now, let us show Ganon what a Hyrulean does when provoked!" She watched as the army before her shouted and started marching toward the army before them.

-----

"Ganon! You have called us out in force! You march your army to us and yet you do not show your face to me! Have you no honor?"

The army before her slowly spread, allowing the great Gerudo King to ride forward. "My Queen, you ask if I have no honor? To be honest, no, I do not. However, just this once, I come to meet your call. Well, it's a surprise to see you, Link," Ganon said as Link came into view.

"What, didn't think I'd live?"

"At first, no, but no death is without its doubts."

"So, your minion couldn't do me in; you think you can?"

"It's evident he's trying," Dark Link said, riding up on a horse darker even than Ganon's midnight black horse. Both rider and steed seemed slightly translucent, the army behind them barely visible.

"So, come to fight for your boss, have you?" Link growled.

"Pitiful, really. Such skill in swords is wasted on heroes."

"I'll make you eat those words!" Link shouted, drawing his sword.

"Is that a challenge?" Dark Link demanded, drawing his own blade.

"Boys, now, save the fighting for the battle," Ganon chimed. Link came _so_ close to lobbing the Gerudo's head off right then and there...

"Link, respect the traditions," Zelda reminded him. Link grumbled and sheathed his sword, prompting Dark Link to do the same.

Ganon started to turn his horse around. "I don't see the point of continuing this discussion. I'm not going to turn back and you're not going to surrender." Zelda nodded and she and Ganon rode to their respective armies. Link and Dark Link, however, stayed.

"You might as well give up. Ganon's got superior forces, the Triforce of Power, and me."

"Well, that may be, but this is our homes, Zelda's got the Triforce of Wisdom, and I'm here. You'd just do better turning around and leaving."

"I don't retreat. It's dishonorable."

"_You're_ talking about honor? To _me_?"

"Yes. I'm just as honorable as you, but I see it in a different light. If you don't believe me, think about it. All those times you'd end our fights almost dead, I could have easily slaughtered you afterwards. However, killing the wounded is low even for me. Of course, Ganon has no problem with it, but that's why I'm not him."

"Well then, we shall do this the honorable way - death on the field of battle. I shall see you soon." Dark Link nodded and Link turned away from Dark Link, approaching Zelda.

"I thought you said never turn your back on your enemy," Zelda said as he arrived.

"Just watch." Link turned to face Dark Link by Zelda's side. Dark Link nodded and did the same, turning completely around and not looking back until he arrived at Ganon's side.

"Mind explaining what that was about?"

"Well, when I turned from him, he could have easily killed me with either sword or bow. It's the mark of a true opponent that doesn't take advantage of that. By doing the same, he showed that he respects me enough not to take a cheap shot, and I the same."

Zelda nodded thoughtfully. "That's one of those complicated 'Knight's Code of Honor' things."

Link shrugged. "More or less."

The two armies didn't have to wait long for something to happen. Ganon pointed his large sword forward and the entire army charged. Zelda, surrounded by her troops, did not give the command to charge.

"Wait for it... Wait..." Suddenly, as they were almost on them, she shouted, "Now!" The army shoved forward, smashing into the startled army.

Link saw Zelda ride forward, a fire in her eyes that he had never seen before. In fact, Link could've sworn that they seemed to be crimson for a half a second. He ignored it, however, and rushed to catch up with her, swinging his sword, killing any who would get near the Queen.

The battle soon became a blur. Link fought and fought and fought, but no matter how many seamen or monsters he felled, there were two more to take their place. He could only charge forward, ignore the cuts and slashes, and hope that the Goddesses would grant him the power to ebb the flow of troops. He was on Epona, he was off Epona, he was on the grass, he was on the walls, he was clean, he was bloodstained, everything became mixed together. He watched as those around him, both friend and foe, were struck down. Soon he could not even tell the difference between Moblin and human, between Gerudo and ReDead, everything blended together. The only thing he _did_ know was that he had to keep swinging, his sword must keep flying, that if he succumbed to the ache he would die and when he died, Hyrule would fall. So he kept swinging, he ignored the horrid smell of battle, he embraced the small bursts of adrenaline, ignored the long periods of pain, he did not feel the slices into his flesh. He did not know whose blood he had on him, nor whose was taking up most of it.

He felt someone pull him off of the ground onto a horse. Zelda's voice rang true, asking him if he was alright. He nodded and she dropped him off where Epona was. She was a sight to behold. There was an assortment of monsters surrounding Epona. As Link ran over, he saw Epona's front hoof lash out at one of the creatures, then another. Link laughed and jumped onto Epona's back. She whinnied and rose up on her hind legs while Link brandished his sword in the air.

"Fear the wrath of the Hero of Time!" he shouted as Epona landed and dashed forward. Link brought his sword to meet as many enemy troops head on as he possibly could.

Five times Ganon's forces broke through their lines, and five times he was pushed back by Link and the surrounding troops. The battle raged on for hours, neither side giving in. Link charged forward and attacked at one of the weak points in the enemy lines, pushing through Ganon's forces. Once in, Link set about to do as much damage as he possibly could do, leading his troops around small chunks of the enemy, leaving small pockets everywhere. Soon word reached all of Ganon's troops of the man on the fiery red horse, brandishing a sword red as blood. He left a swath of death behind him as he went. He was fearless, as it seemed.

In truth, Link was weakening. His reserves were almost extinguished, he could barely lift his arms, his strength was sapped. In short, the Hero of Time was almost spent. He used what little energy he had in him to charge once more, a desperate push into the fight.

As he charged, he noticed a rumbling in the ground. "Pull back! Now!" he shouted, retreating. As soon as they were out of the way, the ground erupted in a large plume of dust and fire. From the hole in the ground, Gorons flooded onto the field. Link heard several more explosions and knew that they were going to be okay.

At the same time, there were joyous shouts from the river as Link saw dozens of Zora warriors appear out of the water. He saw Ruto at the head of the column, riding a strange blue animal that was similar to a horse. She rode up to him.

"Perfect timing!" Link shouted.

"Well, we couldn't leave you hanging, eh, Brother?" Darunia said from behind him.

Link laughed. "Goddesses bless you both! Somehow, Ganon's supplementing his troops from somewhere. For every one I kill, two more take its place! And trust me, I've killed a whole lot of 'em."

"Well, we're here to help!" Ruto responded. "Zoras! Charge! For the Crown! For Hyrule!" She pulled what looked like an extraordinarily large fish bone from a sheath by her side. Link saw that both sides of this strange bone sword were deadly sharp.

Darunia needed no weapon. Each punch sent enemies flying back into the rest, each body slam cracked even the ground. He and the Gorons decimated the ranks using some sort of explode-and-flood strategy. Link watched as Darunia went left and Ruto went right. He took the middle.

He charged, swinging the Master Sword left and right. He pushed into one of the knots of troops and, as usual, shattered it. He rushed recklessly forward when he heard the one noise he had hoped never to hear: Zelda shouting for help.

He jerked Epona around and saw Zelda fending off about ten or twelve extraordinarily large Moblins. Link charged forward and dispatched four with one swing. He took care of the others while he pulled Zelda onto Epona. As he tried to kill the last one, it hurled the spear at Link, which he dodged. However, he heard the sickening squelch of it tearing through skin and muscle and heard Zelda gasp. Instantly, Link turned to Zelda, urging Epona to the back of the lines while he looked at the wound. Deciding that it had cut through several muscles, although nothing that would cause permanent damage, he started to pull back. Zelda, however, stopped him.

"No. For my people, I must fight."

Link nodded and rode over to her horse, which was holding up quite a decent fight. Zelda jumped to her horse and the two charged forward again, determined to take back lost territory.

The two fought and charged, leaving a trail of death and destruction behind them. Together, they were unstoppable, a veritable tank. Link soon lost count of how many fell under their blades. Link saw a spear whiz past him and he chased down the Moblin who had thrown it. He jumped to the ground as the creatures piled in around him.

_Perfect._ He brought his hands to his side, then stepped forward, slamming them into the ground. "Din's Fire!" A wave of fire erupted from him, evaporating the monsters surrounding him. He then heard Zelda call out his name.

He, along with most of the army turned to their Queen. She was surrounded by large bear-monsters. Link jumped on Epona as one of the bear-things slammed Zelda across the chest with the handle of his large spear, sending her flying off of her horse. Link and Epona charged over to where she was and lifted her onto Epona.

She was barely breathing, knocked unconscious. Epona took off toward the castle in the distance. Link watched as the troops followed his movements sadly.

They dashed across the drawbridge and up to the castle. Link dismounted and lifted Zelda off of Epona. He walked up the stairs to her room. As he placed her on her bed, she groaned.

"L-Link?"

"It's alright, Zelda, you're safe."

"Wh-where am I?"

"The castle. You got slammed bad down there."

She forced herself to stand, each and every wound sending spasms of pain through her. "N-no. I, I have to fight."

"You'll get yourself killed!"

"I am the Queen and as Queen, I must protect my people." She started to walk to the door, but Link blocked her way.

"No. I won't let you get yourself killed."

"Link, I have to do this. The fate of Hyrule lies on this fight!"

"I don't want to lose you again!" Link shouted suddenly. "You've almost died once already, and I'm not going to let you ride off to your death!"

"Link..." she started but Link cut her off.

"Listen. Everyone has their own talents, their own hidden abilities, if you will. It's how we use them that makes us who we are."

Zelda nodded as Link opened the door.

"I will return for you, Zelda, this I swear."

Link looked at the battlefield before him. The armies had pulled apart, allowing a short time to recuperate. He looked first at Darunia, who seemed to have started riding a rather familiar red Dodongo, and Ruto on her fish-horse mount. Each nodded to the other, and Link stopped in front of the weary army. Each soldier, no, each _person_ looked back at Link with a look of defeat in their eyes. They had lost all hope when Zelda had fallen. Link turned to face them. Instead of giving a speech to motivate the troops as Zelda did, he merely drew his sword. He turned to face the opposing army, which had actually shrunk by a considerable amount. He pointed the Master Sword directly at Ganon in the distance.

"For Zelda!" he shouted, charging forward.

"For Zelda!" rang every voice in the army that was to save Hyrule. Beaten and battered, each and every person carried the cry until it reached as far as it would go. The full force of Hyrule marched toward a hopeless battle, Link's battle cry still ringing in their ears.

"For Zelda."


	42. Hidden Abilities: WDD Sneak Peek

Alright! If you're reading this, that means that Hidden Abilities, lovingly referred to HA, has been completed! With HA completed, that means that work on WDD, my second story in the HA Saga, has begun! I figured that, with such an exciting and thrilling ending, you'd be digging through files trying to find the second installment, WDD in this case. I have the first chapter of it up, but for those who don't really think about it, here's a tidbit of the first chapter to entice you further. Once you finish it, if you wish to read the rest of it, either click on my profile and click the story labeled "**Hidden Abilities: When Darkness Descends**" or do a search for the same. Enjoy!

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**"Do not falter!" Link shouted over the roar of the battle. "We carry the hope of all Hyrule!" He charged forward, the remaining force of Hyrule behind him. He quickly left the army behind him, riding into the thick of Ganon's troops. He swung the Master Sword around like a whirlwind. No attack reached him, no defense stopped him. He was a veritable tank on the battlefield, mowing down the enemy before him.**

**"Ganon! You have darkened the lands with blood and stolen the lives of Hyrule's finest! Today justice shall be meted out in full!" He rode forward and jumped off of Epona.**


End file.
